UAE — Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) has signed a long-term Heads of Agreement with Indian Oil Corporation, India’s largest integrated and diversified energy company, for the delivery of one million tonnes a year of LNG.

The LNG will primarily be sourced from ADNOC’s lower-carbon Ruwais LNG project, which is currently under development in Al Ruwais Industrial City, Abu Dhabi, with commercial operations expected to start in 2028.

Under the 15-year agreement, LNG cargoes will be shipped to Indian Oil’s destination ports in India.

Rashid Khalfan Al Mazrouei, ADNOC Senior Vice President for Marketing, said India was an important strategic partner of the United Arab Emirates and the agreement underscored ADNOC’s commitment to delivering secure, lower-carbon energy to support the country’s energy security.

He said: “The agreement also highlights confidence in the Ruwais LNG project, which is an integral part of ADNOC’s strategy to expand our global LNG footprint to meet growing demand today while helping the world transition to a cleaner energy future.”

The agreement also further strengthens ADNOC’s position in India’s fast-growing energy market – by 2029, Indian Oil is expected to become ADNOC’s biggest LNG customer, with a total offtake of 2.2 million tonnes a year, comprising 1.2 million tonnes from Das Island and 1 million tonnes from Ruwais LNG.

This LNG supply agreement highlights the success of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), signed by the UAE and India in 2022, in strengthening bilateral trade cooperation between the two nations.

The agreement with Indian Oil is one of several long-term LNG sales commitments ADNOC has signed with international partners for Ruwais LNG for over 70 per cent of the project’s total production capacity.