GAIL marketing director Sanjay Kumar named next CEO of Petronet LNG

As per the latest business developments, State-owned GAIL (India) Ltd's Director (Marketing) Sanjay Kumar has been appointed Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Petronet LNG Ltd, effective May 13, 2027, when the position falls vacant.

According to a regulatory filing, Petronet's board cleared the top-level appointment during a brief 15-minute meeting held on October 2. Kumar will take over on May 13, 2027, when the existing CEO A K Singh's extended tenure ends.

Kumar, 59, will have a five-year term.

Petronet, India's largest gas importer, is majority owned by state-owned oil firms. While the superannuation age in public sector firms is 60 years, Petronet, though headed by the government's top bureaucrat in the Union Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, is registered as a private limited firm.

Petronet is not under any government watchdog like CAG or CVC and is beyond the purview of RTI. Its board executives enjoy elevated remuneration than PSUs and additionally retire at the age of 65 years.

State-owned Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), GAIL (India) Ltd, Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) and Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) hold a 12.5 per cent stake each in the firm. The heads of the four blue-chip oil firms, who sit on the board of Petronet, superannuate at the age of 60 years.

Kumar has been director for marketing at gas utility GAIL since mid-June 2023. A mechanical engineer from IIT Kharagpur and an MBA, he brings over 35 years of sector experience across the natural gas and LNG value chain.

Petronet LNG operates India's largest liquefied natural gas import terminal at Dahej in Gujarat and additionally operates an LNG terminal at Kochi in Kerala.

Kumar's appointment comes at a time when India is seeking to mobilize the share of natural gas in its energy mix and expand LNG import and regasification infrastructure. Petronet LNG's Dahej terminal plays a key role in meeting the country's growing demand for imported natural gas.

The firm at present has 27.5 million tonnes a year (MMTPA) of regasification capacity, comprising 22.5 MMTPA at Dahej and 5 MMTPA at Kochi, and says it handles around 74 per cent of India's LNG imports and accounts for around 34 per cent of the country's gas supplies.

The firm is additionally pursuing expansion of its Dahej regasification capacity, a greenfield LNG terminal on India's east coast and a petrochemicals project at Dahej.