Companies news
Total Partners Adani Group To Fuel Its Larger India Play
French oil and gas giant Total SA will run liquefied natural gas (LNG) regasification terminals at Mundra and Dhamra and roll out 1,500 fuel stations over 10 years in partnership with the Adani Group as it looks to tap demand in the world’s fastest-growing energy market.
Total and Adani Group did not disclose the financial details of the agreement, but persons briefed on the deal said the Euronext and New York-Stock Exchange-listed French multi-national would invest more than ₹2,000 crore in a joint venture to develop multi-energy offerings to the Indian market such as LNG and fuel retailing.
This is because a firm looking to get a licence to retail fuel should have a minimum investment of ₹2,000 crore in exploration or production, refining, gas or product pipeline, or terminals, according to government policy. Total, the world’s second-largest LNG player, is expected to own as much as 50 per cent in the JV, which will accommodate the Adani Group’s interests in LNG regasification facilities, LPG terminals and city gas distribution networks.
Adani’s fuel foray
It will also mark the Adani Group’s entry into fuel retailing in India, which is dominated by state-run oil refiners IOCL, BPCL and HPCL, and private firms, including Reliance Industries Ltd, Royal Dutch Shell and Russia’s Rosneft-backed Nayara Energy (formerly Essar Oil).
The partnership with Adani Group will help Total emerge as the biggest private player in India’s LNG sector, overtaking Petronet LNG. Total picked Adani Group for a larger India play because the Ahmedabad-based conglomerate has the downstream infrastructure critical to its plans.
