South Korean LNG importing giant Kogas reported a 43.6 percent rise in its July gas sales on the back of higher demand for power generation.
Kogas said in a filing to the stock exchange it sold 2.57 million mt last month. This compares to 1.79 million mt Kogas had sold in July last year.
July sales also rose 12.3 percent when compared to the previous month’s 2.29 million mt, the state-owned firm, which has a monopoly in domestic gas sales, said.
Moreover, purchases by power firms surged 78.6 percent year-on-year to 1.62 million mt in July. These purchases also rose by 22.7 percent when compared to the previous month.
Kogas said its sales to retail gas companies for households and businesses increased 7.7 percent year-on-year to 954,000 mt, while they decreased 1.9 percent compared to the month before.
The firm currently operates four large-scale LNG terminals, namely Incheon, Pyeong-Taek, Tong-Yeong, and Samcheok, as well as a small-scale regasification terminal at the Aewol port on Jeju island.
The LNG importer plans to build a large terminal in Dangjin as well. South Korea’s Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction recently revealed it had won a contract from Kogas to build storage tanks at the Dangjin facility.
Under the contract, a consortium led by Doosan will build four LNG storage tanks with a capacity of 270,000 kiloliters, each.