Iran LNG exports in trouble
Economy & Policy
GE refuses gas-conversion equipment to Iran due to US sanctions.
India’s $22-billion deal to import 5 million tonnes of LNG from Iran is in trouble after General Electric of the US is believed to have refused Tehran the supply of crucial equipment needed to make LNG.
Trouble in sourcing technology might delay the first round of LNG supply to India by at least two years to 2012, sources said.
The US corporation had refused to supply compressors, a crucial link in converting natural gas into liquid for transportation in ships, to Iran, industry sources said.
German firm, Linde, had also refused liquefication technology to Iran. As such, Iran cannot access commercially proven LNG liquefication technologies due to US sanctions.
The only two commercially- proven LNG liquefication technologies are of US origin and the sanctions preclude the US-based firms to associate with projects in Iran.
Sources said Iran was banking on yet-to-be-commercially-tested MFC process of Linde and Liquefin process of Axens (a wholly owned subsidiary of IFP, France) for liquefication of natural gas produced from gigantic South Pars fields in the Persian Gulf.
Tehran is pitching for the French technology by awarding a huge block in South Pars field to the French firm, Total, for the production and export of liquefied natural gas.
While the French liquefication technology is its only hope as of now, Tehran is also talking to Ukrain for compressors. Compressors from Ukranian are, however, not very energy-efficient and may push up liquefication cost.
National Iranian Oil Co (NIOC), which owns the South Pars gas field, was to approve the LNG export deal to India within three weeks of signing of the sales purchase agreements between Iran’s gas export firm NIGEC and India on June 12 but is yet to give its stamp of approval.
Sources said the NIOC approval for the $ 22-billion deal was to come by July 5 but it had sought more financial details of the proposal while considering it. India wants to import 5 million tonnes per annum of LNG from iran, beginning 2009-10, to supplement its domestic natural gas production.
In June, three separate agreements were signed between the NIGEC and GAIL India Ltd (2 million tonnes per annum), NIGEC and Indian Oil Corp (1.75 million tonnes per annum) and NIGEC and Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (1.25 million tonnes per annum).
GE refuses gas-conversion equipment to Iran due to US sanctions.
India’s $22-billion deal to import 5 million tonnes of LNG from Iran is in trouble after General Electric of the US is believed to have refused Tehran the supply of crucial equipment needed to make LNG.
Trouble in sourcing technology might delay the first round of LNG supply to India by at least two years to 2012, sources said.
The US corporation had refused to supply compressors, a crucial link in converting natural gas into liquid for transportation in ships, to Iran, industry sources said.
German firm, Linde, had also refused liquefication technology to Iran. As such, Iran cannot access commercially proven LNG liquefication technologies due to US sanctions.
The only two commercially- proven LNG liquefication technologies are of US origin and the sanctions preclude the US-based firms to associate with projects in Iran.
Sources said Iran was banking on yet-to-be-commercially-tested MFC process of Linde and Liquefin process of Axens (a wholly owned subsidiary of IFP, France) for liquefication of natural gas produced from gigantic South Pars fields in the Persian Gulf.
Tehran is pitching for the French technology by awarding a huge block in South Pars field to the French firm, Total, for the production and export of liquefied natural gas.
While the French liquefication technology is its only hope as of now, Tehran is also talking to Ukrain for compressors. Compressors from Ukranian are, however, not very energy-efficient and may push up liquefication cost.
National Iranian Oil Co (NIOC), which owns the South Pars gas field, was to approve the LNG export deal to India within three weeks of signing of the sales purchase agreements between Iran’s gas export firm NIGEC and India on June 12 but is yet to give its stamp of approval.
Sources said the NIOC approval for the $ 22-billion deal was to come by July 5 but it had sought more financial details of the proposal while considering it. India wants to import 5 million tonnes per annum of LNG from iran, beginning 2009-10, to supplement its domestic natural gas production.
In June, three separate agreements were signed between the NIGEC and GAIL India Ltd (2 million tonnes per annum), NIGEC and Indian Oil Corp (1.75 million tonnes per annum) and NIGEC and Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (1.25 million tonnes per annum).
posted by Marcel at 11:26 AM
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