KOGAS seeking 2 MT medium term LNG to meet demand: Report

Korea Gas Corp (KOGAS), South Korea's sole importer and wholesaler of liquefied natural gas (LNG), has been seeking two million tonnes of term LNG to meet growing demand, a company source said on Thursday as reported by Reuters.

The state-run KOGAS has been in talks with several suppliers since it invited bids in late September for two million tonnes of LNG under mid-term supply contracts ranging possibly from five to 10 years, the source told Reuters.

He declined to identify negotiating partners and said the term period was still flexible depending upon talks with potential suppliers.

"We are seeking the volume to meet growing LNG demand particularly from the second half of next year," he said.

The world's second-largest LNG importer after Japan needs to import an additional 1.8 million tonnes of LNG next year and without new contracts, the supply shortage is expected to rise to two million tonnes in 2004.

KOGAS has long-term supply contracts for a total of 16.9 million tonnes of LNG a year with Indonesia, Malaysia, Oman, Brunei and Qatar.

A 20-year supply contract with Indonesia, the largest LNG supplier to South Korea, expires in 2007. The other existing contracts expire after 2013. (*)