Indian oil and gas company Swan Energy has revealed that it plans to sell its stake in one of its floating storage and regasification units (FSRUs) to Turkish state company Botas for $399 million. The deal is expected to close within six months and is subject to shareholder and regulatory approvals.
The FSRU, named Vasant 1, with a cargo tank capacity of 180,000 m³, is owned by Triumph Offshore, a subsidiary of Swan Energy, which is 51% owned by Swan Energy and 49% by IFFCO, and will be completed and delivered in 2020 by HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, formerly known as Hyundai Heavy Industries. Swan Energy has not yet indicated whether IFFCO will also sell its stake in the Vasant 1.
Swan Energy had originally planned to deploy the FSRU at the 5 million tons per annum Jaffrabad LNG import terminal in Gujarat on the west coast of India. The distance from the gulf states to Jaffrabad is the shortest compared to all other LNG terminals in India. India’s seven other LNG terminals are all located onshore, with five of them operating at less than half capacity due to weak demand and lack of pipelines.
However, the Jaffrabad project had been delayed several times due to hurricanes and the New Crown Epidemic, resulting in a drop in LNG demand and the terminal being unable to come on stream in 2023.
Indian media reported last year that Swan Energy hoped to sell the FSRU, but it was denied by the company and the terminal start-up date was pushed back to 2024.
Meanwhile, the Vasant 1 was leased to Botas for one year in March last year. According to MarineTraffic’s AIS data, while the FSRU is currently in Turkey, the contract can be extended by mutual consent, but it is unclear whether the lease has been extended.