Petronet LNG powers FY15 profit by 24%
28 April 2015 12:03 AM GMT
Petronet LNG Ltd (PLL) achieved 102 per cent capacity utilisation at its of Dahej plant, a 5 per cent rise in turnover to its highest ever level of Rs 39,501 crore, a 24 per cent rise in profit after tax (PAT) to Rs 883 crore and launched several new initiatives at its Kochi LNG terminal in financial year 2014-15. During the fiscal which ended on March 31, 2015, PLL’s Dahej terminal processed 521 TBTUs which translates into a capacity utilisation of 102 per cent.
The Kochi terminal handled 12 TBTUs of ,LNG including reload sales, and primarily served two consumers in the vicinity of the terminal — the BPCL refinery and FACT. LNG sale through trucks too was initiated to Hindustan Life Care Ltd. During the year 2014-15 Petronet LNG Ltd increased throughput by about 6 per cent over the previous year’s figure and the net profit of the company stood at 883 crore.Â
This was also the first full year of operations for the Kochi LNG terminal. Volumes in the fourth quarter (January-March 2015), however, decreased over the previous quarter due to low offtake of volumes under long-term agreements. Among the many significant milestones achieved by the company during the year were commissioning of the second jetty at the Dahej LNG terminal, unloading of a Q-Max LNG cargo at the Dahej terminal, import into and re-load for export of an LNG cargo from the Kochi LNG terminal, performance of gas-up and cool-down services for a warm LNG vessel at the Kochi LNG terminal, provision of bunker fuel to a vessel at the Kochi terminal, re-finance of the company’s entire rupee debt through placement of bonds in the domestic markets, and upgrade of the company’s ERP package.
Work on expansion of the Dahej terminal to 15 mmtpa, too, continued on schedule during 2014-15 and is expected to be complete by November 2016.
India urges Qatar to lower LNG price to match global decline
India has asked its largest liquefied natural gas (LNG) supplier Qatar to cut gas prices to match the 60 per cent slump in global rates in last one year. India buys 7.5 million tonnes a year of LNG on a long-term 25 year contract, indexed to a moving average of crude oil price. The price of LNG from Qatar comes close to $13 per million British thermal unit as compared to the $6-7 rate at which it is available in the spot or current market.
The high price of LNG under the long-term contract has led to users in fertiliser and power industry finding it cheaper to use alternate fuels like naphtha and fuel oil, a top source said.
Petronet LNG Ltd, which has been buying LNG from Qatar on a long-term contract since 2004, has asked for a 10 per cent cut in import volumes this year, they said. "The contract is a take or pay wherein the buyer has to take the contracted volume every calendar year or pay for it. But the contract also provides for a flexibility that gives the buyer (the option) to defer taking 10 per cent less of yearly supplies. These volumes can be taken at anytime during the duration of the contract," the source said. Similarly, the contract also provides for the buyer to seek 10 per cent more quantity over the contracted volume in any year, with the excess volume being adjusted during the remaining duration of the contract. The source said Petronet has already exercised the 10 per cent option and is in negotiations to raise this volume to 25 per cent.
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