BPMIGAS hopes Tangguh price renegotiation with CNOOC to be concluded March

Upstream oil and gas authority BPMIGAS hopes to be able to conclude Tangguh LNG price renegotiation deal with Chinese?s CNOOC next month after having agreed on most of major issues, the agency chairman Kardaya Warnika said on Monday.

?We?re done with major issues and left with several minor ones. Hopefully the deal will be concluded next month, ? Kardaya told reporters.

He, however, declined to reveal adjusted pricing formula, saying that under the deal, price formula must not be disclosed.

BP Plc.. along with BPMIGAS had been trying to push CNOOC to increase Tangguh LNG price that would be exported to Fujian, banking on the fact that, thus far, CNOOC could not complete conditions precedent that would make gas deal signed between BP and CNOOC effective.

BP, BPMIGAS and CNOOC reportedly had held talks over the matter, and several reports said that CNOOC had agreed to increase Tangguh LNG price. But CNOOC sources quoted by agencies earlier reported that the price increase agreed by CNOOC would not be ?dramatic?. Before renegotiation, Tangguh LNG ceiling price to Fujian was set at US$2.6 per MMBTU.

Shipment of Tangguh LNG to Fujian is expected to commence in early 2008. CNOOC will import some 2.6MTPA of tangguh LNG for 20 years. (godang)