Shell India to get first LNG cargo soon

Royal Dutch/Shell will receive the first cargo of liquefied natural gas (LNG) at its Hazira terminal in Gujarat this month.

"We will receive the first LNG cargo soon," Marc de Hartog, director of Shell India, said today.

A Shell-controlled tanker, the 136,000 cubic meters Gemmata, is set to carry the first commissioning cargo to the terminal. "The first cargo will arrive from Australia," Hartog said.

Shell will hold a formal function to mark the event on April 21.

India began importing LNG last year when Petronet LNG received its first cargo from Qatar in January 2004.

Shell's first cargo will go into pre-commissioning activities, Hartog said but declined to comment if the company would source LNG from Australia for commercial sales.

He also did not disclose when Shell proposed to begin commercial sales. "Tieing up of customers is important," he said.

Shell is setting up the Hazira terminal to handle five million tonne of LNG per year. Initially, it will import 2.5 million tonne a year.