The proposal came up during last month’s India-Iraq Joint Commission Meeting in Delhi. India already has strong ties with Iraq, particularly in energy trade with Baghdad being a top source of Delhi’s crude oil imports.

Put simply, gas flaring refers to burning of unwanted and unutilised associated natural gas that is produced during oil production and other processes in the oil industry. A major oil and gas producer, Iraq is one of the biggest gas flaring countries as it lacks facilities to capture and process the gas to convert it into fuels or export it as LNG.

“Iraq flares a lot of natural gas and we are a large importer of gas. So, we are exploring if our companies can set up plants in Iraq to liquefy that gas into LNG,” said the official, who did not wish to be identified. As per estimates by global agencies, Iraq flares around 50 million standard cubic metres per day (mscmd) of natural gas. In 2022-23, India’s LNG imports stood at 19.9 million tonnes, which is equivalent to 71.6 mscmd of natural gas.

Over the past couple of years, Iraq has committed in international fora that it will make efforts to reduce gas flaring at its facilities, given that flaring leads to high intensity pollution and waste or precious natural resources. Meanwhile, Indian gas companies, particularly GAIL (India) Ltd and Petronet LNG Ltd have been scouting for opportunities to set up or invest in gas liquefaction plants in other countries.

The official quoted above, however, did not name the Indian companies that may be looking at building liquefaction facilities in Iraq. The estimated timelines are also not clear, considering various impediments, particularly the security situation in Iraq.

India depends on imports to meet about half of its natural gas requirement. India, like many other countries, views natural gas as a key transition fuel as it makes efforts to accelerate its move to green energy. The Narendra Modi Government has set an objective to increase the share of natural gas in India’s primary energy mix to 15 per cent by 2030 from a little over 6 per cent at present. This means that India’s natural gas demand is likely to grow considerably over the next few years, which in turn means that imports will also increase substantially.

Indian oil and gas companies, therefore, have been looking at inking more long-term deals for LNG, while also exploring opportunities to participate in overseas gas liquefaction and LNG export projects. This assumes significance in the backdrop of volatility in global gas and LNG prices following the post-pandemic recovery in demand. The situation was further aggravated by the war in Ukraine, which led to massive ramifications for global energy markets.

As per a September 2022 report by Paris-based International Energy Agency (IEA), 143 billion cubic metres (bcm) of natural gas was flared globally in 2021, which is roughly equivalent to the total volume of natural gas imported into Germany, France, and the Netherlands. “This resulted in the direct release of 270 mt (million tonnes) of CO2 (carbon dioxide) and nearly 8 mt of methane (240 mt CO2-equivalent) into the atmosphere, plus black soot and other greenhouse gases,” the IEA reports said.

“Five countries (Russia, Iraq, Iran, the United States, and Algeria) accounted for more than half of all volumes flared globally in 2021. With natural gas prices at historic highs, gas flaring is an extraordinary waste of economic value (as much as $55 billion per year at a price of $10 per MBtu) alongside its negative impacts on climate change and human health. Reducing flaring and bringing this gas to market could offer relief to very tight gas markets and, in many cases, could do so faster than investing in new supply,” the IEA added.

https://indiashippingnews.com/india-plans-lng-terminal-in-iraq/

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IOCIndia’s top oil firm IOC has signed deals to import liquefied natural gas (LNG) from UAE’s Abu Dhabi Gas Liquefaction Co Ltd and TotalEnergies of France on a long-term basis. Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) signed the deals during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to France and the UAE last week.

A “Head of Agreement (HoA) (was signed) between Indian Oil Corporation Limited and TotalEnergies Gas and Power Ltd (TotalEnergies) to establish a long-term LNG sale and purchase agreement (SPA),” according to the list of agreements put out by the Ministry of External Affairs.

IOC signed a deal to import 1.2 million tonnes per annum of LNG from Adnoc-LNG for 14 years starting in 2026. The deal with TotalEnergies is for the import of 0.8 million tonnes a year of LNG for 10 years starting in 2026.

This is the first long-term deal TotalEnergies has signed with an Indian company. Also, this is the first time an Indian company has signed a long-term LNG import deal with Adnoc.

TotalEnergies is the third largest LNG supplier in the world and would be supplying LNG to IOC from their diversified portfolio across the world.

IOC is sewing new deals in line with the government goal of increasing the share of natural gas in the energy basket to 15 per cent by 2030 from the current 6.2 per cent.

Long Term LNG contracts play an important role in balancing out the inherent volatility of spot LNG market and thus make it an affordable and reliable LNG supply.

These agreements would not only diversify the supply source of LNG for IOC but also would help in meeting the growing demand for cleaner and more sustainable fuel sources, an official said.

ADNOC LNG is the national oil and gas company of the Abu Dhabi government and is the oldest supplier of natural gas from the Middle East.

India and UAE have a CEPA (Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement) with UAE Govt which provides for zero customs duty to be applied on LNG imports from UAE against an applicable customs duty of 2.5 per cent plus surcharge, the official added.

LNG is natural gas that has been cooled to minus 162 degress Celcius, changing it from a gas into a liquid that is 1/600th of its original volume. This allows it to be shipped in specially designed LNG vessels.

India has seven LNG import facilities on the east and west coasts. IOC operates a 5 million tonne a year import terminal at Ennore in Tamil Nadu.

https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/energy/oil-gas/indias-russian-oil-binge-may-slow-on-lower-discounts-payment-woes-source/articleshow/101835393.cms?from=mdr

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3000 charging stations by March 2025

Established in 2017, Fortum currently boasts of 450 charging stations in India, with a network expansion overview of 3000 charging stations across the country by March 2023. The company also claims the honour of installing India’s first (EV) charging point in Hyderabad in 2018 in association with Indian Oil Corporation LTD. (IOCL).

Commenting on the latest development, Awadhesh Kumar Jha, Executive Director, Glida, said, “We are excited to unveil our new brand identity Glida, which demonstrates what we stand for – ‘freedom to move without any barriers or hesitation’. our purpose to create a robust runway for the swift take-off of electric mobility into mainstream.”
When asked about self sustainability of charging stations in India from an economic point of view, Jha said that the current ecosystem is self sustainable without much government support. He further added, “We are very clear in our mind that expansion of charging infrastructure should precede growth in EV sales.”

At the start of this year, Fortum introduced the RuPay Prepaid Card, in collaboration with Pine Labs– a flexible prepaid card used for making payment of charging sessions completed at Fortum charging stations anywhere in India. The firm also holds the distinction of installing the first 50kW fast chargers in the country when it joined hands with MG Motor in 2019 shortly after the launch of MG ZS EV.

Other initiatives by Glida

Fortum India, now Glida, is working on establishing dedicated drive-in charging hubs for its consumers at prominent public centres such as malls, parks, etc. The company currently operates six such charging hubs in the country and intends to add 12 more by the end of this year. 

Besides EV charging infrastructure, Glida is working on other avenues of sustainable energy solutions. The company has recognised bio-ethanol from bamboo extracts as a viable alternative to conventional fossil fuels in the near future and has set up a new refinery in Assam, slated to be commissioned towards the end of 2023.

https://www.financialexpress.com/business/express-mobility-fortum-india-is-now-glida-to-set-up-3000-charging-points-by-march-2025-3167233/

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The report ‘Can the Norwegian Barents Sea help solve Europe’s gas crisis?’ concludes that after spending years in the doldrums, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine brought a potential Barents Sea gas export route back onto the agenda in Norway. However, the report added there are several hurdles the 800 kilometre, 15 million square metres per day (msm/d) would have to overcome before it was green lit by Oslo.

“The Barents Sea basin has enough existing resources to fill the pipeline, but the costs involved would make developing the gas more expensive than alternative imports from new LNG developments,” Daniel Rogers, Senior Analyst at Wood Mackenzie says. “However, gas from the area offers a cleaner alternative to LNG, and any proposed development would be carried out under strict Norwegian environmental controls.”

Map of proposed export route

The report adds that state-funding of the pipeline, or the introduction of a Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism(a tool designed by the European Union (EU) to encourage cleaner industrial production in non-EU countries) on gas imports to Europe would increase cost competitiveness.

“The carbon and socioeconomic argument for a pipeline – and further development of the basin – is strong, but it won’t happen without government support,” Rogers says. “However, if long-term European gas demand and prices fall faster than expected, this would put further pressure on the viability of the project.”

Remaining gas resource breakdown and pipeline capacity limits (2030 – 2060)*

 The report also states that while Barents Sea gas would help alleviate Norwegian production decline, it won’t be a gamechanger. A bigger pipe would be required to incentivise high-impact exploration and realise the basin’s full potential.

Currently, gas in the Barents Sea is produced from the Snøhvit Area subsea fields and is sent via pipeline to the Hammerfest LNG facility. The facility is expected to be at full capacity until the 2040s. There is currently no direct pipeline route connecting Barents Sea gas resources to the main Norwegian pipeline network.

https://www.hellenicshippingnews.com/norways-800km-barents-sea-gas-pipeline-back-on-agenda/