India seeks gas supplies from US, UAE, Saudi Arabia

State-run GAIL (India) Ltd recently bought spot LNG at more than $40 per million British thermal units (mBtu) amid high global LNG prices. GAIL had to make expensive spot purchases after Gazprom’s former subsidiary, Gazprom Marketing and Trading Singapore (GMTS), breached its contract.

“We are looking for additional cargoes from other countries as much as possible. So far, the supply of gas is not an issue. Only the price is. Today, gas is available everywhere, including the UAE and the US. We are working hard to negotiate a good deal. , we have access to gas at affordable prices. We are looking at Saudi Arabia, the US, the UAE and Iraq. We have contacted these countries about our needs,” said one of the two officials, neither of whom was quoted above. would like to be named.

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India is particularly disadvantaged because higher global prices raise import bills, trigger inflation and widen its trade deficit. India relies on imports for 85% of its oil needs and 55% of its natural gas needs.

The U.S. supports efforts to diversify LNG supplies in line with climate goals and reducing gas demand, a spokesman for the U.S. embassy in New Delhi said in an emailed response, adding that the U.S. was on track to become the largest LNG exporter this year.

“U.S. LNG exports have grown more than 20 percent since October 2021, and the EIA forecasts U.S. LNG exports to grow another 14 percent by the end of the year,” the spokesperson said in an emailed response.

Inquiries emailed on Sept. 20 to spokespersons for India’s foreign affairs, oil and gas ministries and the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Iraqi embassies in New Delhi remained unanswered by press time. An external spokesman for the UAE government asked the UAE trade minister to respond by September 30.

“Spot purchases are from the US, Qatar and Australia. We are looking to diversify our sources and considering long-term contracts. National Gas is working with different players. We are trying to get supply from wherever possible at the most suitable price ,” said the second Indian government official mentioned above.

The G2G outreach also comes at a time when India can neither seek arbitration from Gazprom nor accept compensation from the world’s largest gas explorer for breach of contract, a thorny issue being dealt with bilaterally at the highest levels of the Indian government. GMTS has signed an agreement with GAIL to supply 2.5 million tonnes of LNG per year for 20 years, starting in 2018-19. While long-term LNG cargoes from Russia began arriving in India in June 2018, supplies have been stagnant since May due to the war in Ukraine.

“The cost of President Putin’s full-scale war against Ukraine continues to climb. As National Security Adviser Jack Sullivan said at a Sept. 20 news conference, the United States very much welcomes Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s speech at last week’s meeting. Addressing President Putin at the OECD summit, and the Indian leadership to continue to strengthen it is time for the war to end,” a spokesman for the US embassy said.

Natural gas consumption in India has been on the rise, with a focus on developing a gas-based economy, with the country consuming 163.06 million standard cubic meters. FY22 per day m (mscmd). Natural gas accounts for 6.2% of India’s primary energy mix, well below the global average of 24%. However, the government plans to increase this to 15% by 2030.

India’s efforts to diversify in energy procurement have gained traction, with state-run Indian Oil Corp signing long-term crude supply contracts with Brazil’s Petroleo Brasileiro SA (Petrobras) and Colombia’s state-run Ecopetrol SA.

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