Hommam Al Nassim 
Egypt is seeking to purchase large quantities of liquefied natural gas from global markets with deferred payment terms of up to 6 months, according to market sources.
Cairo, which in the past few years has been a reliable exporter of liquefied natural gas to Europe, is trying to deal with dwindling natural gas supplies that have forced it to return to importing gas.
According to Reuters, citing trade sources, the Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company (EGAS) is seeking to purchase 17 shipments of liquefied natural gas through a tender that closes on June 26, with 7 shipments to be received in July 6 in August, and 4 in September, via the shipboard delivery system at the port of arrival. .
The sources confirm that Egypt may eventually pay a premium of more than the average of between one and two dollars per million British thermal units on the price of gas at the Dutch “TTF” Center to secure the required quantities.
Standard & Poor’s data reveals that Cairo has already paid a premium of between $1.3 and $1.7 per million British thermal units for cargoes it bought earlier this year.
Data indicate that strong Asian demand for transatlantic gas, which is expected to be Egypt’s main source of supplies, is causing increased competition, as the Bab al-Mandab Strait remains closed due to tension in the Middle East.
For his part, Samuel Goode, Head of LNG Pricing at Argos Commodity Pricing Agency, explains that transatlantic LNG supplies may be the only ones able to compete in this tender.
He adds that demand from Asia, especially Japan, during the past weeks has been higher than many had previously expected.
Experts expect that the floating regasification and storage unit from the Australian company Hogg Galleon, which arrived at the port of Ain Sokhna on the Red Sea last week, will handle 12 of the expected shipments, while 5 other shipments will be received at the port of Aqaba in Jordan.
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