Centrica frontrunner to buy National Grid's LNG terminal in $2 billion deal, FT reports

(Reuters) -British Gas owner Centrica and Energy Capital Partners are in talks to buy the Isle of Grain LNG terminal from National Grid in a deal valued at about 1.5 billion pounds ($2.03 billion), the Financial Times reported on Wednesday.

Centrica declined to comment on the FT report, while National Grid and Energy Capital did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests for comments.

National Grid, which owns and operates Britain's high-voltage electricity transmission network, had said last year it was seeking to sell its Grain LNG terminal, Europe's largest such facility, as part of its efforts to streamline operations.

FT said a deal could be announced shortly.

Centrica announced in July it had signed an agreement to acquire a 15% equity stake in Britain's new nuclear project, Sizewell C. The company also reported a drop in its first-half profit.

Hong Kong's CK Infrastructure Holdings was among the interested parties for the terminal, but has reportedly dropped its pursuit, Bloomberg News reported earlier this month.

LNG has become a vital source of gas for Europe, especially after the Russia-Ukraine conflict and as the subsequent Western sanctions on Russia disrupted energy markets. The resulting price surge continues to weigh on British consumers.

($1 = 0.7373 pounds)

(Reporting by Gnaneshwar Rajan and Mrinmay Dey in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel and Shreya Biswas)