Kogas agrees to defer 2nd semester LNG cargoes: BP Migas

South Korean gas distributor Kogas has agreed to delay three cargoes of LNG it should have received this semester from Arun LNG after extensive talks, a BP Migas official said.

?Kogas has agreed to defer three cargoes of LNG from Arun to next year,? said BP Migas senior official in charge of gas marketing Djoko Harsono Wednesday. BP Migas is an authority that supervises Indonesian upstream oil and gas industry.

Djoko said similar talks to defer three more cargoes to Japan utility firms Chubu Electric and Tohoku Electric are underway.

Earlier, BP Migas vice chairman Kardaya Warnika said Arun LNG would need to purchase maximum three overseas LNG cargoes this semester.

Arun LNG, which is located in the northern tip of Sumatra Island, has to cut its LNG production, as some of gas supply was diverted to Aceh fertilizer makers.

Kogas, the sole importer and wholesaler of LNG in energy-deficient South Korea, imports 5.3 million tonnes every year under three long-term contracts from Indonesia.

Tohoku Electric buys three million tonnes of LNG from Indonesia a year under a long-term agreement.

Indonesia is seeking to extend its LNG contracts with Kogas for 2.3 million tonnes under a 1986-2007 deal with the Arun LNG plant. (godang)