BusinessLine: Mozambique gas to fuel BPCL’s next growth phase

Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL) is betting big on its overseas exploration business where Mozambique and Brazil, in particular, have been happy hunting grounds.

“We have had good discoveries in these countries and Mozambique has an opportunity to be the third largest LNG producing nation in the world. Needless to add, this is good news for us,” S Varadarajan, Chairman and Managing Director of BPCL, told Business Line.

Bharat PetroResources (BPRL), the exploratory arm of BPCL, has a 10 per cent stake in Mozambique’s Rovuma basin. The chief operator here is Anadarko of the US and the other equity partners include Mitsui and OVL-Oil India. Gas is expected to flow by the end of 2018-19 and this will mark an important chapter in BPCL’s energy business.

“Buyers could be from Japan, China, Korea and India which are natural markets for gas,” Varadarajan says. BPCL as a buyer is also in talks with the consortium to explore the possibility of bringing some gas from Mozambique here.

“If everything goes well, the gas could be brought by us to India though BPCL will take a decision purely based on pricing economics,” he says. Eventually, it is up to the consortium to take a call based on what it perceives is the best price on offer. MORE