Arun to produce 4 cargoes of LNG next month, Japanese potential buyers

Liquefied natural gas (LNG) producer PT Arun NGL Co was expected to produce four cargoes of LNG next month with the Japanese buyers as potential buyers, a senior official of state oil and gas company Pertamina said on Tuesday.

Sidick A. Nitikusuma, spokesman for Pertamina's directorate of production sharing management, told Petromindo. Com negotiations were now in progress between Pertamina and the LNG buyers from the western part of Japan over the purchase of the four cargoes.

"The buyers are showing interest to buy all the LNG," Sidick said.

The buyers, which are better known as "western buyers" in the industry, include Osaka Gas and Toho Gas.

Arun NGL, which is co-owned by Pertamina and American oil and gas giant ExxonMobil, was forced to suspend its operation in Aceh for months due to disruptions in gas supplies from ExxonMobil. But the company recently resumed operation.

It however has to work hard to persuade its former customers to buy its LNG again because the latter have signed contracts to buy LNG from other producers.

Arun is expected to produce one cargo of LNG this month -- its first production after the resumption of operation --, which, according to Sidick, Japanese firm Tepco had agreed to buy.

One cargo contains 57,000 tons of LNG. (Godang/Alex)