Striking a balance between energy security and affordable prices, India has clearly told America that it wants gas, but not expensive gas. He will buy LNG only if the price is right and cheap. Petronet LNG chief Akshay Kumar Singh said India wants affordable and beneficial energy for its people. Therefore, American gas will be purchased only when its price is fair and economical compared to other fuels.
In a press conference, Petronet LNG CEO Akshay Kumar Singh said that India will buy gas which is cheap and beneficial for the people. He said that if the price of gas remains right, people will use it more instead of other fuels. He has said this at a time when talks regarding trade between India and America are intensifying.
trade agreement background
Recently US President Donald Trump announced to reduce the import duty on Indian goods from 50% to 18%. In return, America has expressed its expectation to more than double its imports from India. The total trade between the two countries in 2024-25 stood at $132 billion, of which a surplus of about $41 billion was in favor of India. India has expressed its intention to buy $500 billion worth of American goods over five years, but economists believe this target could affect the trade balance.
Strategy to increase gas consumption
India is currently the world’s fourth largest LNG importer. The government aims to increase the share of gas in the energy mix from 6% to 15% by 2030. The demand for gas in fertilizer, city gas, refining and power sectors is continuously increasing. The country has about 27,000 MW of gas-based power generation capacity, but due to lack of cheap gas, the plants are running at less than one-fourth of their capacity. In such a situation, availability of cheap LNG becomes important.
Looking for long term deals
Petronet, which imports gas from Qatar and Australia, is now exploring long-term agreements. The company is expanding the capacity of its existing terminal and is also building a new import terminal on the east coast.
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