LNG buyers including IOC negotiate US deals ahead of PM Modi-Trump summit

By Rakesh Sharma and Stephen Stapczynski

   

India’s top importers of liquefied natural gas are holding talks to buy more fuel from US suppliers, ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s expected meeting with President Donald Trump in Washington this week.

 

Firms, including Indian Oil Corp., are in discussions to buy LNG on a long-term basis from top US exporter Cheniere Energy Inc. and other companies with access to American supply, according to people with knowledge of the matter. 

 

India’s buyers will hold meetings with suppliers over the next few days, during the India Energy Week conference in Delhi, said the people, who asked not to be identified discussing sensitive matters. 

 

Companies are under pressure from the government to reach deals, but will be looking for the best possible terms before signing any agreements, they added. India’s Ministry of External Affairs did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.

 

Cheniere declined to comment. Indian Oil did not immediately respond to a request for comment. 

 

The discussions come as Modi prepares to travel to Washington DC later this week. He may well follow in the footsteps of Japan’s prime minister Shigeru Ishiba, who, in a meeting last week, pledged to buy more LNG from the US in order to reduce its trade surplus. 

 

Modi has shown himself eager to appease Trump, showing no resistance to accepting the return of undocumented Indian migrants and making clear the nation will stick to the dollar as a trading currency. Indian officials have said he is prepared to discuss reducing import tariffs and buying more energy and defense equipment from the US.

 

Other governments including Taiwan, Japan, South Korea and the EU are considering purchasing more US LNG to head off Trump’s tariffs and reduce their trade surplus with the world’s biggest economy.

 

The US is the world’s top exporter of LNG, while Indian demand for the power plant and industrial fuel is set to rise through the decade as the nation seeks to curb dependence on dirtier options. 

 

Indian companies and officials have stepped up conversations with US suppliers following Trump’s election victory last year. It isn’t clear how many deals will actually materialize. Any new deals likely wouldn’t start until later this decade, as there is little spare supply available now.