A novel perovskite catalyst with the composition of LaGa0.65Mg0.15Ni0.20O3-delta (LGMN) is synthesized by the sol-gel combustion technique. The nanostructure catalyst has been examined for the partial oxidation of methane (POM) into syngas. A variety of characterizations including XRD, BET, SEM and TG-DTA were applied to determine the crystalline structure of the formed nanosized particles. The syngas selectivity over the catalyst may reach up to 100% with the methane conversions larger than 81% at 900 degrees C and 55 mL min(-1) g(-1) feed velocity. XRD and thermal analysis reveals that the LGMN powder has maintained the perovskite structure very well after 210 h POM reaction signaling its high chemical stability. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.