The Hindu Business Line : Dahej LNG terminal to be fully operational next year

THE Petronet LNG Ltd (PLL)'s terminal, first of its kind in the country here would utilise its full capacity from next year after taking delivery of the second LNG tanker scheduled for December 16.

The terminal, which has been utilising only 50 per cent of its capacity for want of the second specially built LNG tanker, would be handling five million tonnes of LNG per annum (mmtpa) from 2005 once the second tanker would become operational, senior officials at the terminal here told a group of visiting journalists from Kochi.

They said that there was "very good demand" and given this situation the terminal capacity would be raised to 10 mmtpa by 2008. With an additional investment of around Rs 800 crore, the capacity could be expanded, they said. The company has already earmarked the area for putting up the additional tank for the expansion. "We have already identified the market for the additional capacity," they said.

According to PLL sources in New Delhi, the demand of GAIL (India) Ltd from this terminal for its customers in 2004-05 would be 5.02 mmscmd while its demand from April 2005 onwards is estimated at 10.53 mmscmd. The IOC's demand for the current fiscal is 2.5 mmscmd and from the next fiscal it would be 15.26 mmscmd while BPCL would have a demand of 0.84 mmscmd in 2004-05 and 1.75 mmscmd from April next. In addition, there would be more customers to be supplied with re-gassified LNG from April next, they added.

They said that the second LNG tanker would be named "Rahi" and it would also have a cargo carrying capacity of 1,38,097.2 cum. The cost of the tanker, which is being built by Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering Company Ltd, South Korea, would be around Rs 700 crore. PLL had signed time charter agreements at most competitive prices for the two latest generation membrane type LNG tankers of cargo carrying capacity of 1,38,000 cubic metres for transportation of LNG from the port of loading at Ras Laffan, Qatar to unloading at PLL at Dahej on March 2001 for 25 years, they said.

The time charter agreements were executed with a consortium of three Japanese companies, Shipping Corporation of India and Qatar shipping.

The two-time charters were later novated by consortium to India LNG Transport Company Ltd. As per the charter agreement, they said, five years from the registration of the tanker, the Indian shipping company shall hold at least 42.5 per cent equity and the tanker would be managed /maintained and operated by Indian crew/personnel. The PLL had taken delivery of the first tanker Disha on January 9, 2004.

They said that the company had signed the gas sales and purchase agreement with GAIL, IOC and BPCL for 5 mmtpa of regasified LNG from Dahej. GAIL would transport the re-gassified gas from both terminals at Dahej and Kochi. The gas would be marketed in Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi and Haryana through Hazira - Bijapur-Jagadishpur (HBJ) pipeline network.

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