Petronet LNG Ltd, India's flagship liquefied natural gas importer, will float an initial public offering of 261 million shares, representing 34.8 per cent of the total equity of the company, around mid-February, P Dasgupta, director (finance), PLL, said in New Delhi on Friday.

The issue will be done through book building for which DSP Merril Lynch, SBI Cap, J M Morgan Stanley, ICICI Securities and Enam have been appointed as merchant bankers, he said.

The company would file the prospectus of the public issue next week, he said, adding PLL shares would be listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange and National Stock Exchange.

Petronet CEO and managing director Suresh Mathur said the company has completed the construction on the country's first LNG receiving and re-gassification terminal at Dahej in Gujarat.

Meanwhile, a 138,000-cubic metre capacity cryogenic ship, built by Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineer Co Ltd, sailed out of Korean shipyards for Qatar to bring natural gas that has been liquefied at sub-zero temperature.

India will become the first developing country in the world to import natural gas through ships when the tanker touches Gujarat shores on January 30.

The LNG tanker, named Disha, will reach Qatar on January 24 and load its first cargo of LNG the next day. The LNG tanker shall sail for Dahej on January 27 and bring the first ever LNG cargo to India on January 30, 2004.

India is importing liquified natural gas as it is faced with a widening gap between demand and supply. Against the demand of 115 mmscmd of gas, domestic gas production is just 65 mmscmd.

RasGas of Qatar will sell 5 million tonnes (17.5 million standard cubic metres of gas per day) of LNG to India for 25 years, beginning 2004.

In the first year, PLL will import 2.5 million tonnes (8.4 mmscmd) and full-scale imports of 5 million tonnes will commence early 2005 after the delivery of the second LNG carrier on December 16, 2004, he said.

Mathur, who took delivery of Disha at South Korea on January 6, said PLL had time-chartered the two LNG tankers from the consortium of Mitsui OSK Lines Japan, NYK Line Japan, K Line Japan and Shipping Corporation of India. Qatar Shipping also has 15 per cent stake in the consortium.

While the first LNG cargo will go for cooling and maintaining the in-fill quantities in the LNG storage tanks and pipelines at Dahej, PLL will receive the second cargo of LNG from Qatar on March 1.

PLL, which is promoted by Indian Oil Corporation, Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd, Gail India Ltd and Oil and Natural Gas Corporation, plans to begin commercial gas sales from April 1.

The four state-run promoter firms hold 12.5 per cent stake each in PLL, while project consultant Gaz de France has another 10 per cent. Asian Development Bank will hold five per cent stake in the company.

The IPO would help PLL achieve financial closure for the five million tonnes a year capacity Dahej project, he said.