GAIL to buy 5 lakh tonnes of LNG from Marubeni

Gas Authority of India Ltd (GAIL) will buy 5,00,000 tonnes of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Japanese trading giant Marubeni under a three-year contract.

Marubeni will deliver the first cargo to Dabhol power plant in Maharashtra beginning 2011, GAIL chairman B C Tripathi said on the sidelines of Petrotech2010.

"We will get eight cargoes every year, which will be supplied to varied consumers," he said. GAIL would receive the cargoes at Petronet LNG's 10 million tonne per annum LNG terminal at Dahej, he added.

The terminal will operate at 20-30 per cent capacity as the breakwater is not fully constructed. It is expected to be commissioned early next year.

Tripathi, however, declined to reveal the price at which GAIL will be sourcing LNG. He only said, LNG from Marubeni is cheaper than LNG from Australia.

Petronet LNG has contracted 1.5 million tonnes of LNG from Exxon Mobil's Gorgon project in Australia for 20 years, petroleum secretary S Sundareshan said on the sidelines of Petrotech 2010 on Saturday.

Petrotech-2010 exhibition-cum-conference being held at Pragati Maidan, in New Delhi is showcasing a number of technology solution for meeting complex geological and frontier challenges to oil sector development.