Ahmedabad, June 8 (IANS) Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd (APSEZ) said on Monday it has secured a 10-year marine services contract for Argentina's first liquefied natural gas (LNG) export, marking its entry into South America and expanding its international marine services footprint and reinforcing growing energy linkages between India and Argentina. India's largest integrated transport utility said the contract has been awarded to APSEZ's step-down subsidiary -- The Adani Harbour International FZCO -- through a consortium with Argentina-based Meridian Group, following a global competitive tender process conducted by Southern Energy SA (SESA).The Adani Group–Meridian consortium will deliver marine services for the Southern Energy FLNG project, supported by an estimated investment commitment of $70 million.In its first phase, the project is expected to produce 2.45 MT of LNG annually, equivalent to approximately 28 cargoes per year, making it Argentina's first operational LNG export project.

“This project reflects our growing capability to support large-scale energy infrastructure projects across geographies. With marine operations in 12 countries and a growing fleet of marine assets supporting ports, LNG terminals, national oil companies, refineries and offshore facilities, we bring deep operational expertise to complex maritime environments,” said Ashwani Gupta, Whole-time Director and CEO, APSEZ. By combining these capabilities with strong local partnerships, “we are helping create reliable maritime ecosystems that enable new energy trade corridors and strengthen long-term supply resilience,” he mentioned.Under the agreement, the consortium will provide end-to-end marine services, including tugboat operations for LNG carriers, offshore logistics, and supply support and crew transfer services.Argentina is emerging as a major new LNG supplier, with agreements in place to support exports of up to 10 million tonnes (MT) annually to India from 2027. The Southern Energy FLNG project is expected to play an important role in connecting this growing supply base with global demand centres. The scope will be supported by four high-specification tugboats, one anchor handling tug supply vessel and one crew boat, said the company.

/IANS