CORPORATE
ONGC set to import ethane to make up for change in composition of LNG imports
- IBJ Bureau
- Mar 24, 2025
Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) plans to import ethane starting in mid-2028 to compensate for the altered composition of liquefied natural gas (LNG) sourced from Qatar, according to a tender floated by the State-owned company.
India imports 7.5 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) of LNG from Qatar. Under the deal, QatarEnergy supplies 5 mtpa of LNG that contains methane (used to produce electricity, make fertiliser, converted into CNG or used as cooking fuel) as well as ethane and propane – feedstock to make LPG and petrochemicals – on a firm basis and the rest on best endeavour basis.
This contract is coming to an end in 2028, and the revised contract signed last year envisages QatarEnergy supplying ‘lean’ gas (the one that is stripped of ethane and propane).
ONGC has spent about Rs 1,500 crore in setting up a C2 (ethane) and C3 (propane) extraction plant in Dahej in Gujarat. The C2/C3 so extracted was used as a feedstock in its petrochemical subsidiary, ONGC Petro additions (OPaL).
With the changed composition of LNG, the company is now looking at importing ethane.
“OPaL has a mega grassroots petrochemical complex and has the largest standalone dual-feed cracker in South-East Asia. The plant has a dual-feed cracker (a mix of naphtha and ethane, (propane) and (butane) as feedstock,” the tender document has said.
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