• 19 Feb 2015

India’s attempt to kickstart domestic LNG shipbuilding industry has come to a grinding halt as GAIL decided to cancel its $7 billion tender after not receiving any bids. India’s state-owned GAIL postponed the tender deadline several times and finally decided to cancel it, reports the Press Trust of  India. Originally GAIL intended to hire LNG newbuilds in order to transport liquefied natural gas from the United States to India. However, the requirement to build one-third of the LNG carriers in India, proved to be a deal breaker for Korean shipyards that were reluctant to share their technology with Indian shipyards. The company officials were reported saying that GAIL will have to refloat the tender excluding the “Built in India” requirement. LNG imports from the United States are scheduled to begin in 2017 meaning the company needs to have the carriers ready by then, but it has already lost time due to the unsuccessful tender.