Pertamina signs LNG freight partnership with NYK

Indonesian state-owned firm Pertamina has signed a preliminary agreement with Japanese shipowner NYK Lines over co-operating in the LNG shipping sector.

The firms will collaborate on joint projects relating to LNG transportation and vessel management under the agreement, which was signed with Pertamina's wholly owned subsidiary Pertamina International Shipping.

The agreement will focus on meeting energy demand in Indonesia, NYK Lines said, which has 32.1mn t/yr of LNG export capacity across three projects. Pertamina holds a majority stake in the country's 22.5mn t/yr Bontang liquefaction facility.

But Indonesia is seeking to import LNG from 2025, as domestic gas production slows on declining reserves, against expected increases in energy demand. The country had planned to begin importing LNG from 2019, but a reappraisal of its remaining gas reserves is set to allow Indonesia to remain an LNG exporter for another six years, the energy ministry said last year.

By Samuel Good