Gail (India) has hired two consultancies to help nail down volumes from a second US LNG export project.UK-based Poten & Partners has been selected as commercial consultant for “contracting capacity” at a US terminal under the so-called Project Diamond.Law firm Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld of Texas has been tapped for due diligence and advisory services for the capacity acquisition.A Gail executive confirmed that Project Diamond involves a second US export project in addition to Cheniere Energy’s Sabine Pass, where Gail has already signed up for LNG volumes.“It is a different project we are looking to get involved in,” he said. “It is too early to say anything more but our team is there (in the US) now. “Nothing has been concluded yet.”Poten was the only bidder for the commercial role while Akin was up against Baker Botts for the legal work. The Indian utility was said to be close to finalising a second US LNG supply deal for 2 million tonnes per annum this July. Gail is known to have been mulling over volumes from the planned Freeport liquefaction project in Quintana, Texas. Osaka Gas and Chubu Electric have already signed tolling agreements for 100% of the capacity from Freeport’s train 1. Definitive deals for the second and third liquefaction units are expected late this year.The Gail source said it is still unclear whether any eventual deal will be purely an off-take contract or a capacity stake. A number of the many proposed US liquefaction projects are set to be run on a tolling basis, meaning companies cannot simply buy the LNG.