India’s liquefied natural gas imports edged higher for the first month in four, along with domestic gas production, as a new LNG import facility on the West Coast is being commissioned to boost delivery capability amid the nation’s slow economic recovery from the ongoing effects of Covid-19.
Höegh LNG, the Norwegian-US fleet owner, has seen its floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU), the “Höegh Giant”, leave Singapore to be deployed offshore India at the end of this week as the Asian nation’s seventh LNG import terminal.
A Spanish equity fund, which holds a 15 percent stake in Norwegian LNG fleet owner Höegh LNG Holdings, said it planned to vote against the takeover offer led by Morgan Stanley and Höegh family interests at a meeting scheduled for March 30 at Höegh’s registered office in Bermuda.
Two years after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the first Indian East Coast liquefied natural gas import terminal at Kamarajar Port, also known as Ennore, Qatargas has delivered its first and largest commercial cargo as the terminal seeks to boost its capacity utilisation, currently under 12 percent.
India posted a drop of more than 14 percent in liquefied natural gas imports last month amid higher prices and as the economy still lagged because of low industrial demand and the ongoing impacts of Covid-19.
India hit a landmark annual total in liquefied natural gas imports in 2020 as the economy continued to grow along with pipeline and terminal infrastructure, even amid the challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic and with several months of shipments under the 2019 level.
Indian liquefied natural gas imports increased by almost 12 percent last month and were on track for record fiscal-year and calendar-year totals as shipments increased due to rising demand, backed by higher terminal capacity use and a steady infrastructure build-out.
Indian liquefied natural gas monthly imports increased by more than 16 percent last month and were back on track for a record fiscal-year total as cargo shipments rose along with economic activity and the nation was set to have its seventh regasification facility in early 2021.