Egypt has purchased two liquefied natural gas (LNG) cargoes for April delivery from two international companies, EGAS Chairman Khaled Abdel Badie told Reuters on Sunday.He did not specified which to companies won the tender. EGAS launched a tender earlier this month, open only to some of its existing suppliers, for the delivery of one cargo on April 1-7, and another on April 27-28. Badie said two shipments for 170 thousand cubic metres each were successfully tendered for and EGAS was "in the final stage of contracting". Traders told Reuters last week that EGAS had so far failed to make purchases from suppliers, some of which were hesitant to arrange delivery on short notice. For the late-April cargo, EGAS had lined up commodity trader Trafigura as the supplier, but the deal ran into difficulties after EGAS tried to bring forward delivery to the middle of April, traders said. Egypt became a major market for LNG shippers after the launch of two floating import terminals last year as the country looks to plug an energy shortage that has halted industrial production during summer months and caused rolling blackouts. But a sharp decline in foreign currency receipts has hindered Egypt's ability to pay for commodities, including LNG, triggering greater caution among suppliers in their dealings with EGAS.
