Tellurian Inc. has announced that they have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Petronet LNG Limited INDIA (PLL) to negotiate the purchase of five million tonnes per annum (5 mtpa) of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Driftwood. They are likely to finalize the transaction agreements by March 31, 2020. India’s largest LNG importer, Petronet will now be able to deliver reliable, low-cost and clean natural gas to India from Driftwood. The president and CEO of Tellurian Inc, Meg Gentle has said that this deal to increase the natural gas use will help the Indian economy to sustainably become a $5 trillion economy.  

Meg Gentle’s Statement 

Meg Gentle, the CEO, and president of Tellurian Inc reiterated that it was an honour for her to sign an MoU with Petronet in the presence of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. She also said that Tellurian is looking forward to a long-lasting and prosperous partnership with Petronet in the Driftwood project. This deal forms a huge part of PM Modi’s trading engagements in the USA.  Tellurian and Petronet had also signed a broad agreement in February that didn’t mention the amount of investment and offtake values. To encourage the use of cleaner fuel, India is building new LNG import terminals and expanding its pipeline network. PM Modi has also targeted to raise the share of natural gas in the Indian energy mix from 6.5% to 15% in the next few years.  

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The Driftwood project 

The Driftwood project consists of natural gas production, gathering, processing, and transportation facilities. Apart from the Driftwood LNG, an approximate amount of liquefaction facility with the capacity to hold 27.6 mtpa of LNG will also be located near Lake Charles, Louisiana on the U.S. Gulf Coast. The U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), in April, issued an order granting authorization for Driftwood LNG and the 96-mile Driftwood Pipeline. This LNG terminal will be inter-connected to the U.S. natural gas market. 

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