Indonesia may buy liquefied natural gas from Oman

Indonesia is seeking to buy liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Oman to meet its export commitments and the needs of fertilizer plants in Aceh, a local newspaper reported Thursday.

If an agreement is reached, about 125,000 cubic meters in volume will be delivered at the end of the year while the other will come early next year, said The Jakarta Post.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has assigned Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare Alwi Shihab to hold talks with Oman and Qatar to secure the LNG cargo.

The delivery schedule and prices would be discussed with state oil and gas firm PT Pertamina and the Oil and Gas Upstream Regulatory Agency (BP Migas).

Alwi said Qatar had also "responded positively" to providing LNG cargoes in 2006. "They said they would be glad to provide (cargoes) as it was in Aceh's interest," he said.

The amount of LNG to be sourced from Qatar had yet to be determined, he said.

The government wants to use the gas to supply to fertilizer plants in Aceh that face closing down after a natural gas contractwith ExxonMobil, a major gas producer in the province, expired in early July.

Source: Xinhua