NEW DELHI, Feb 10 (Reuters) - Indian oil companies are

looking to buy U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG), buoyed by the

Trump administration's lifting of a ban on export permits for

new projects, Oil Secretary Pankaj Jain said on Monday.

The world's fourth largest importer of LNG, India aims to

raise the share of gas in its energy mix to 15% by 2030 from

6.2% now.

"Indian oil companies are talking to U.S. companies for

additional LNG sourcing," Jain said, adding that among such

companies were GAIL (India) Ltd, Indian Oil Corp

and Bharat Petroleum Corp.

Indian companies will discuss gas sourcing with suppliers of

U.S. LNG on the sidelines of the four-day India Energy Week

conference from Monday, Jain told reporters.

Indian companies would consider buying stakes in U.S. LNG

projects if the deals were attractive, he added.

GAIL will revive plans to buy a stake in a U.S. LNG plant or

secure a long-term US LNG deal, its chairman, Sandeep Kumar

Gupta, told Reuters.

GAIL now imports 5.8 million tons of U.S. LNG annually under

long-term deals, split between Berkshire Hathaway Energy's Cove

Point plant and Cheniere Energy's Sabine Pass site in

Louisiana.

The bulk of India's LNG imports under long term deals is

supplied by Qatar, with prices linked to crude oil. India's gas

sourcing portfolio should have a mix of both U.S. Henry Hub and

crude oil linked prices, Jain said.

Indian companies are particularly keen to buy LNG from the

U.S. as crude oil could be purchased from multiple suppliers.

Indian Oil Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said energy imports

from the United States would be discussed when Prime Minister

Narendra Modi meets President Donald Trump this week.

At least six Asian countries, including Japan and Taiwan,

have expressed interest in buying U.S. LNG, with some hoping to

narrow their trade deficits in the face of Trump tariff threats,

while others look to expand and diversify supplies.

(Editing by Clarence Fernandez)