Japanese trading companies Mitsubishi Corp and Itochu Corp said they will invest in a liquefied natural gas company in Oman.

Mitsubishi and Itochu, along with gas supplier Osaka Gas, will each buy three per cent in Oman’s state-run Qalhat LNG SAOC from the Omani government.
After the transaction, the Omani government’s holding will be reduced to 46.84 per cent. Other shareholders are not changed, with another Omani company Oman LNG holding 36.8 per cent of Qalhat LNG and Spain’s Union Fenosa 7.36 per cent.
The Qalhat LNG’s project started producing 3.3 million tonnes of LNG per year in December 2005, supplying the fuel to Japan and Europe.
Both Mitsubishi Corporation and Osaka Gas already have long-term LNG supply agreements with Qalhat LNG under which the company supplies 0.8 million tonnes of LNG per year to each of these two companies.
While Mitsubishi Corp will transport its volume to both the United States and Japan, Osaka Gas will transport its share only to Japan.
Itochu Corp has already entered into a sales and purchase agreement with Oman LNG for lifting a similar volume of LNG on a long-term basis.
Qalhat LNG SAOC was incorporated in 2003 by the Government of Oman in keeping with a decision to initiate a new LNG company that would own a third train in Qalhat, Sur.
Nearly $700 million has been invested into the engineering, procurement and construction of Qalhat LNG 3.3 million tonnes per year (tpy) liquefaction train.
The Qalhat LNG train is located adjacent to two identical trains of Oman LNG at Qalhat in Sur.
The two companies share certain common facilities and therefore, the new train along with the existing facilities, is being operated as an integrated plant to optimise the operation and efficiency of the complex.
Qalhat LNG has signed three long-term sale and purchase agreements (SPAs) for a total contracted volume of approximately 3.3 million tpy. These include a 20-year long SPA to supply LNG to Spain’s Union Fenosa Gas (1.65 million tpy), a 17-year long SPA with Osaka Gas (0.80 million tpy) and a 15-year long deal with Mitsubishi Japan (0.8 million tpy).
Qalhat LNG’s success proves the standing the Government of Oman enjoys in the international arena.
The new agreement will help to strengthen and enhance economic ties between Oman and Japan and will attract further foreign investments into the country.