Reuters: PM Tusk says Poland may avoid payments for excess Qatari gas
Poland may avoid having to pay for the liquefied natural gas (LNG) it has agreed to buy from Qatar but cannot bring into the country because of delays in building a Polish gas terminal, Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on Wednesday.
Under the "take-or-pay" contract signed in 2009 with state-run exporter Qatargas, Poland's gas monopoly PGNiG will buy 1 million tonnes of LNG annually for 20 years at a price closely correlated to crude oil. Delivery of the gas was intended to begin this year.
The deal requires state-controlled PGNiG to pay for the LNG whether Poland's first gas terminal on the Baltic coast is ready or not. Construction problems have delayed the facility's launch beyond 2014.