India's February LNG Imports Spike Almost 20%

After dropping by almost 3% in January, India’s LNG imports witnessed a sharp 19.2% year-on-year rise in February. Imports in February were 2.1bn m³, latest data published by oil ministry’s Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell showed.

For the April-February period, India’s LNG imports were up by a healthy 16.4% on year at 22.5bn m³.

Qatar is the largest supplier of LNG to India. Given the backdrop of low global LNG prices, Petronet LNG insisted on renegotiating its long-term contract with RasGas. In December, the two parties signed a revised deal. The revised formula bases the price on a three-month average figure of Brent crude oil, replacing a five-year average of a basket of crude imported by Japan.

India has four operating LNG terminals: Dahej, Hazira, Dhabol and Kochi. According to a document released by the oil ministry on June 3, India’s LNG terminal capacity could more than double by 2022 as existing terminals expand and new ones are commissioned.

Shardul Sharma