NEW DELHI, Apr 26: Oil major Rasgas, Qatar has offered up to 20 per cent stake to Petronet Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) in their shipping company proposed to be set up to transport 7.5 million tonnes of LNG to India.Rasgas-Mobil Consortium is the supplier of LNG to the two terminals of Petronet at Dahej and Kochi and the proposed Qatar Shipping Corporation will be the principal carrier to transport the LNG from Qatar. The multinational company has, in principle, agreed to offer about 15 to 20 per cent stake to Petronet in this proposed company, Petronet sources said. Though Petronet is yet to firm up its plan for LNG transportation to its two terminals, the offer of Rasgas to set up a shipping company and giving stake to the Indian firm would help Petronet to diversify in the shipping area also, the sources said.Petronet LNG, which does not have any expertise in shipping business might form a consortium with one multinational company like Mitsui, Marubeni or Mitsubishi to pick up stake in the Qatar shipping company, they said. Rasgas-Mobil Consoritum has been selected by Petronet LNG for supplying about 2.5 million tonnes of LNG at Kochi terminal in Kerala and five million tonnes of LNG every year at the Dahej terminal in Gujarat. Petronet LNG and Rasgas-Mobil Consoritum are presently negotiating on the modes as to how the new company would operate and various other technical and financial aspects for the company's operation, the sources said.The Indian firm has already signed the head of agreement with the multinational company which would be the supplier of LNG at the two terminals for a period of 20 years, they said. Qatar has also given the "exclusivity rights" to Petronet LNG, which would ensure that Rasgas Mobil would offer LNG to Petronet LNG only and no one else in Gujarat and Kerala.Petronet LNG is a consortium of national oil companies set up by the government for putting up LNG terminals in various parts of the country to import LNG. Top
