Royal Dutch/Shell, Europe's second largest oil firm, started its Rs 3000 crore liquefied natural gas terminal in Hazira in Gujarat today and delivered the first gas to customers.Shell sold the first gas from the merchant terminal to Gujarat State Petroleum Corp (GSPC), Shell India director Marc Den Hartog told a news conference here.Hazira terminal is the first merchant terminal in Asia which does not follow the conventional model of sourcing LNG from a particular project on long-term and then tying up long term sales contract with customers in the importing countries."We are offering flexible customer-tailored contracts where we aim to match customer's requirements of price and quantity with terms available in global gas market," he said.In simpler words, shell after assessing the needs of a customer and the price that it is willing to pay, will scout for LNG in global markets and if suppliers terms match with the customers requirment a 'match-making' will take place.He said the first gas was sourced from Australia's north west shelf project, in which shell has a 22% stake.The cargo has been sold to GDPC. A Shell-controlled tanker, the 136,000 cubic meters Gemmata, carried the first cargo. The shipping of LNG was in conformity with the new LNG shipping laws, Vikram Singh Mehta, chairman Shell group of companies in India said."The current policy does not allow import of LNG on freight-on-board (FOB) basis. We have imported the cargo on ex-ship basis (CIF). It is in conformity with the guidelines," he said.
