Petronet LNG’s Gopalpur Terminal Project Cost Rises to ₹6,354.8 Crore
Land-based terminal selected due to unavailability of floating units; profits drop amid lower LNG demand
Bhubaneswar: State-run Petronet LNG Ltd (PLL) has revised the project cost of its upcoming liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal at Gopalpur, Odisha, to ₹6,354.80 crore, citing a shift from a Floating Storage and Regasification Unit (FSRU) to a land-based facility. The decision, driven primarily by the global shortage of FSRUs, has led to an increase of over ₹4,000 crore in project costs compared to earlier estimates.
In a regulatory filing on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), the company said its board has approved an additional investment of ₹4,048.80 crore for setting up a 5 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) land-based LNG terminal, replacing the initially proposed 4 MTPA FSRU-based terminal. The total cost now stands at ₹6,354.80 crore, inclusive of all taxes and duties.
This would be Petronet’s first greenfield LNG terminal on India’s East Coast, and it is expected to be completed within the next three years.
Despite the expansion plans, the company reported a subdued financial performance for the March quarter (Q1 FY25). Petronet’s consolidated net profit fell 24% year-on-year to ₹842 crore, while sequentially, profits dipped by 23%. The drop is attributed to reduced LNG imports caused by lower demand from the power sector—due to early monsoon rains—and shutdowns at some fertilizer plants for maintenance.
Total consolidated income also declined to ₹12,096 crore in Q1 FY25, down from ₹12,413 crore in the previous quarter (Q4 FY24) and ₹13,593 crore in the same period last year.
The Dahej terminal, one of Petronet’s primary assets, processed 207 thousand British thermal units (tBtu) of LNG during the quarter, compared to 189 tBtu in Q1 FY25 and 248 tBtu in Q4 FY24. Overall, the company processed 220 tBtu of LNG in Q1 FY25, down from 262 tBtu in Q4 FY24.
As of June 30, 2025, Petronet’s trade receivables included significant ‘Use or Pay’ (UoP) dues—where customers pay for booked capacity even if unused—amounting to ₹1,421.56 crore (gross), with net receivables of ₹814.01 crore after a provision of ₹607.55 crore.
These dues relate to long-term regasification agreements with underutilized capacity and are spread across FY23 (₹694.29 crore), FY24 (₹610.00 crore), and FY25 (₹117.27 crore).
While the expansion of the Gopalpur terminal reflects PLL’s long-term commitment to strengthening India’s LNG infrastructure, current operational and financial pressures highlight the challenges the company faces amid volatile market demand and capacity utilization issues.
