GAIL (India) shares surged more than 3% in the early trade hours on January 30 after the natural gas company announced inking a contract to procure LNG from the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company.

GAIL’s shares hit a fresh 52-week high of Rs 177, more than 3.05% higher than its last closing price on the National Stock Exchange (NSE). At 11:25, the stock was trading 1.83% higher at Rs 174.90.

In an exchange filing on Monday, GAIL announced that it signed a long-term contract to procure liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC). The country’s largest natural gas company added that the purchase agreement is for 0.5 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) LNG. 

According to the agreement, the delivery of LNG will commence from 2026 onwards for a period of ten years. 

The companies had earlier signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on October 30, 2022, wherein the parties agreed to explore opportunities in potential areas of collaboration, including the purchase of LNG by GAIL from ADNOC.

Sandeep Kumar Gupta, chairman and managing director of GAIL, commented that this long-term deal with ADNOC will help the Government of India achieve its objective of expanding the share of natural gas in India’s energy basket to 15% by bridging the gap in the country’s demand and supply of natural gas.