PetroVietnam Gas to Secure $700 Million for LNG Terminal

PetroVietnam Gas Corp. is in talks to secure up to $700 million in foreign loans for a $1 billion liquefied natural gas terminal.

PetroVietnam Gas General Director Do Khang Ninh told Bloomberg News that the company plans to start construction of the LNG terminal by 2012. The company is in discussions with more than 10 suppliers, including Qatar Liquefied Gas Co., as it seeks to boost imports of the fuel and meet Vietnam's rapidly rising demand for energy, Ninh said.

"It's much more difficult to borrow than in the past. Now the government no longer guarantees loans, so that has posed a challenge for us." Many banks are interested in the financing, he said, declining to elaborate," Ninh added.

PV Gas' proposed terminal, to be built in the southern province of Binh Thuan, will be able to handle imports of up to 3 million tons of LNG per year, Ninh noted. The terminal is expected to be ready for first cargoes by 2015.