LNG

Malaysian shipping group MISC has accepted a letter of award from Petronas for the charter of five additional LNG carriers, committing to a newbuilding programme at China’s Hudong-Zhonghua, with construction due to begin in 2027 and deliveries targeted for 2030.

China’s National Energy Administration (NEA) has urged state LNG buyers – CNOOC, CNPC, Sinopec and PetroChina – to stop LNG resales through the remainder of 2026 and into early 2027, as Beijing seeks to strengthen domestic gas availability during the winter heating season.

The United States and China have extended a bilateral trade truce – the so-called Busan Agreement – until January 10. The accord reduces the risk of renewed tariff escalation between the world’s two largest economies, but does not include a commitment that China will buy US LNG.

Chinese President Xi Jinping will fly to Washington for a state visit on 24 September in a bid to stabilise a relationship strained by tariffs and technology controls. LNG markets eagerly await whether Xi will agree to remove the 15% tariff on US LNG imports to China, which currently renders such imports uneconomic.

Swiss commodity trader Glencore has signed a 10-year LNG supply contract with S&T International, part of China Suntien Green Energy, on a cost, insurance and freight (CIF) basis. Deliveries are expected to start in 2027.

Bangladesh has approved in principle a proposal by China National Energy Engineering & Construction Co (CNEE) to build and operate the country's third floating LNG import terminal, despite the Chinese company's regasification fee being substantially higher than those of existing terminals.

China’s push to build out its coal-to-gas (CTG) industry will curb reliance on imported LNG. Targeted to reach 28 Bcm/year of synthetic gas production by 2030, Beijing’s CTG program equates to roughly 20 mtpa of pipeline‑quality gas that can substitute for imported LNG.

CNOOC's Binhai regasification terminal in Jiangsu has resumed commercial LNG reloads and received its 100th LNG carrier, underscoring its role in the Chinese gas trading market.

Sanctioned Arctic LNG 2 has already despatched more LNG to China this year than in the whole of 2025. LNG Journal's own research shows 24 cargoes totalling 1.49 MMt sailed for China by 16 July on a sailed-date basis, against 17 cargoes and 1.05 MMt across all of last year, a total passed as early as 19 May.

One US LNG cargo reached China on 16 July, the first in seventeen months, but it may never be imported. Our tracking shows the Al Fat'h diverted from Huizhou, an ordinary customs berth, to bonded Yangpu, where a cargo can wait, clear customs, or leave again with duty never falling due. Which of those happens is not yet knowable, and Beijing's tariff on US LNG still stands.