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GasCo to seek LNG term supply for delivery from 2028

onwards

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Expects gas supply gap to reach 3 mln T in 2028-2029, 6

mln T in

2035

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GasCo to nearly double headcount next year

By Emily Chow and Florence Tan

SINGAPORE, Nov 21 (Reuters) - Singapore's new state gas

buyer GasCo will seek offers in the first quarter for liquefied

natural gas term supply for delivery from 2028 to meet an

expected supply gap in the country, its chief executive said.

The company was set up earlier this year to centralise

Singapore's gas procurement and supply after LNG prices spiked

with the Ukraine-Russia war.

Existing contracts will cover Singapore's demand over the

next two years, but the supply gap is set to grow to around 3

million metric tons in 2028-2029, and reach about 6 million tons

in 2035, Alan Heng told Reuters during an interview on Thursday.

"We anticipate that by 2028-2029 it would ramp up quite

significantly," he said, with these estimates factoring in

imports of piped gas and power from neighbouring countries.

The city-state relies on gas to generate 95% of its

electricity.

Buyers will continue managing the existing contracts, with

deals for piped gas mostly ending by 2028 and LNG from 2028 to

2032, Heng said.

Price and supply reliability will be key considerations for

GasCo in evaluating new offers, as well as contractual

flexibility, said Heng.

"It can be by way of turning down cargoes. It can also be by

way of asking for more cargoes ... But having some ability to

divert cargoes is also helpful for us."

GasCo plans to nearly double its headcount by next year from

25 staff currently, Heng added.

NEW DEALS

Last month, Heng announced that GasCo was in talks with LNG

suppliers for long-term contracts, and expected U.S. supply to

be part of its portfolio.

Besides U.S. LNG, which is typically priced off the Henry

Hub benchmark, GasCo will also seek Brent-linked term supplies

commonly used by Singapore's power firms, said Heng.

Singapore would also like to renew piped gas import deals

with its neighbours, though Heng acknowledged the volumes

Singapore receives will eventually decline as Malaysia and

Indonesia use their fields to meet growing domestic demand.

"In the event that there is piped gas, it will complement

LNG. But if it's not available, then LNG becomes a predominant

supply," he said.

Singapore is already seeing increasing volumes of imported

LNG.

A wave of new LNG supplies, which analysts expect to come

online through the end of the decade, will favour buyers, Heng

said.

"There's going to be quite a bit of LNG coming our way so we

actually think it's a good time to contract."