By Nidhi Verma
NEW DELHI, May 3 (Reuters) - India's top gas importer
Petronet LNG expects a 'huge jump' in local gas demand
for at least six months due to a softening of global prices of
liquefied natural gas (LNG), its chief executive A. K. Singh
said on Wednesday.
Indian gas demand is already showing signs of recovery after
global LNG prices fell to about $11 per million British thermal
units in Asian markets .
Petronet operated its 17.5 million tonnes a year Dahej LNG
terminal on the west coast at 97% in April compared to 77% in
the three months to March, Singh told reporters on its quarterly
earnings call.
"If the prices stabilise we can expect a huge jump," Singh
said, adding Indian gas demand was price sensitive.
India wants to raise the share of gas in its energy mix to
15% by 2030 from 6.2% at present.
Singh said Indian LNG imports could have risen to 30 million
tonnes a year had there not been abnormal situations such as the
COVID pandemic and Russia's war in Ukraine.
In the fiscal year to March 2023, India imported 20.1
million tonnes of LNG, down from 25.6 million tonnes in 2019/20
according to the government data.
"Things are looking quite bright as of now... We expect this
trend to continue at least till six months from now," Singh
said.
He added demand in the later part of the year would depend
on the winter season in the West and its implication on LNG
prices.
Singh expects capacity use at its 5 million tonnes a year
Kochi terminal in southern India to rise beyond 20% as Mangalore
Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd and a petrochemical
plant could turn to gas from liquid fuels, drawn to the lower
prices of the cleaner fuel.
Petronet is adding two LNG storage tanks at its Dahej plant
and one at its Kochi facility, he said.
(Reporting by Nidhi Verma
Editing by Christina Fincher)
Messaging: nidhi.verma.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))
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