AG&P taps LNG expert from India

Philippine-based Atlantic, Gulf and Pacific Co. (AG&P) has appointed an Indian expert in liquefied natural gas (LNG) to spearhead the company’s expansion in the country and the rest of Asia.

AG&P named Abhilesh Gupta as its global chief financial officer and commercial head to lead its expansion in India and beyond, with focus on connecting off-grid customers across the country to affordable gas supply.

“Abhilesh is one of India’s most recognized experts in commercializing LNG projects with over 22 years’ experience in leading and managing international finance and commercial portfolios in LNG/natural gas and power in India and Singapore,” AG&P chairman Jose Leviste Jr. said in a statement.

“AG&P’s singular objective is to optimize the quantity of LNG through its terminals, underpinned by our scalable designs, on day one. I am thrilled to welcome Abhilesh to our world-class global leadership team to drive our LNG vision forward,” he added.

Prior to joining AG&P, Gupta was the group chief financial officer of Asia Genco Pte Ltd., where he monitored and strengthened the commercial, regulatory and He represented the investment consortium formed by Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, General Atlantic, Everstone, Ashmore and Norwest.

During his tenure as the general manager of finance at Petronet LNG Ltd., he played a pivotal role in the financial closure of India’s first LNG receiving and regasification terminals at Dahej, Gujarat and at Kochi, Kerala.

He was instrumental in arranging long-term finance from domestic and international banks, financial institutions, multilateral agencies like ADB, IFC and Kfw (Germany). Further, he was the driver behind investor relations in India and internationally and led several major LNG sale purchase agreements and charters.

“AG&P brings to the LNG industry its unique approach to serve ‘power stranded’ or LNG ‘dark’ markets with pragmatic, standardized infrastructure. For the first time, the industry will have a single interface across the LNG value chain – from sourcing to last-mile delivery – that removes the complexity and simplifies the decision for customers to make the switch to LNG as an alternative fuel of choice. I am excited and privileged to be a part of AG&P’s outstanding team that is paving the way for sustaining the LNG revolution through its innovative delivery solutions.” Gupta said.

AG&P has a long and successful track record of delivering pragmatic solutions for the oil and gas industry with expertise in LNG.

It is only one of three companies worldwide to have a global technical and licensing agreement for membrane tank design from French giant GTT.