With the lifting of sanctions, Iran is planning LNG liquefaction facilities. An Indian delegation visited Iran during the last week of July 2015, wherein the Indian side indicated their willingness to purchase LNG from Iran, Indian Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan informed the upper house of the Indian Parliament in a written reply. In 2005, India's gas transmission company GAIL, alongside Indian Oil Corporation and Brahmaputra Cracker and Polymer Limited, signed a contract with the National Iranian Gas Export Company to buy 5 million tons of LNG annually, according to Pradhan's statement, Sputnik reported. The NIGEC failed to execute the contract, as it had not received an approval from the National Iranian Oil Company. Pradhan said India's demand for gas is expected to increase by almost one-third in 2018 and 2019.
