Indian Oil to double Ennore LNG terminal's capacity to 10 mn metric tpy

Indian Oil Corp, the country's top refiner, aims to double the capacity of its liquefied natural gas (LNG) import terminal at Ennore in southern India, Sandeep Jain, the company's executive director for gas business, said on Friday.

The company plans to expand capacity to 10 million metric ton per year (tpy) amid the growing demand for gas in the country, Jain told reporters at an industry event. He did not elaborate the details.

India wants to raise the share of gas in its energy mix to 15% by 2030, up from the current 6.2%, as part of an effort to cut emissions.

Jain said IOC hopes to boost local sales of gas to 20 million tpy by 2030, a substantial increase from the current 6.3 million tpy.

Aside from the Ennore terminal, IOC has leased capacity in at least two local projects operated by other companies to import gas.

Jain said India needs to sign more long-term LNG import contracts to ensure price stability.

IOC recently signed two agreements for 14-year LNG import contracts worth $11 billion, he said.