Chinese LNG imports rise over 18 percent in 2021 to be World No. 1 with around 5MT lead over Japan
Chinese liquefied natural gas imports reached almost 79 million tonnes in 2021, increasing by more than 18 percent and overtaking Japan to become the World No. 1 importer of the fuel.
China’s LNG and pipeline gas imports jump versus last year when Covid-19 was cited for cancellations
Chinese natural gas imports, including LNG shipments and pipeline gas, jumped last month but the figure was so high mainly because in the year-ago period China was at the height of its Covid-19 economic slowdown and deliveries were cancelled.
China’s LNG and pipeline gas imports jump for January-February 2021 - a year after Covid-19 explosion
China’s combined natural gas imports for January and February 2021 rose 17.5 percent to 20.80 million tonnes compared with the previous year as colder weather increased demand for winter heating and industrial activity was higher than last year when Covid-19 was spreading.
Natural gas imports over the January-February period in 2019 had amounted to 17.36MT for LNG and pipelines, according to China's General Administration of Customs.
China’s main LNG suppliers are Australia, Qatar, Malaysia, Indonesia, Russia and the US.
The Chinese also receive pipeline gas from southeast Asian nation Myanmar and from the Central Asian republics of Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, as well as from Russia since December 2019 as part of Russian company Gazprom's Power of Siberia project.
The separate data for LNG is expected to be released soon in the belated statistical gathering process caused by the Chinese Lunar New Year holidays in February 2021.
Chinese industrial activity usually slows during the New Year break, which fell in the middle of February this year.
The January-February period of 2020 was when Covid-19 was spreading in China.
The Chinese data showed that in January-February 2021, overall imports of all products increased 22.2 percent from a year earlier.
China also posted a trade surplus of $103.25 billion for the first two months of 2021.
Analysts had expected the trade surplus to narrow to $60.15Bln from $78.17Bln in December.
China had confirmed in January 2021 that 2020 LNG imports hit an annual record.
Chinese imports totalled 67.13MT of LNG in 2020, an increase of 11.5 percent.
Shipments during December to China’s network of 22 LNG terminals also hit a record monthly high of 7.59MT, up 18.2 percent from the December 2019.
Imports by China have been increasing even at higher North Asia spot LNG cargo prices.
The Japan-Korea Marker price for North Asia had fallen to its lowest ever of $1.83 per million British thermal units on the 29th of April 2020 before jumping more than eight-fold in the closing stages of December to a more than six-year high of $15.10 per MMBtu.
The JKM prices then rose substantially in January and February 2021 to reach a reported high of up to $38.00 per MMBtu.
Chinese imports had grown at a fast pace to 61.68MT in 2019, a 13.5 percent increase on 2018 when 53.81MT was received and from 2017 when 39MT was imported.
China confirms 2020 record for LNG imports even at higher spot cargo prices after energy market recovery
China confirmed that 2020 liquefied natural gas imports hit a record as energy needs continued to grew even after the slowdown in the first half caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Russia-China gas pipeline has lower than expected first-year deliveries equivalent to 2.8MT of LNG
Russian natural gas giant Gazprom marked the first anniversary of the coming on stream of the first gas pipeline from Russia to China, regarded as competition for LNG, but details released of current pipeline operations and capacities show less than expected year-one deliveries.
Gazprom boosts pipeline gas to China in competition to LNG and studies new route across Mongolia
Gazprom and China National Petroleum Corp. have held talks on the increasing deliveries of pipeline natural gas to Northern China from Russian in the Power of Siberia pipeline project in competition with LNG cargoes, with the Chinese asking and receiving higher daily volumes.
PetroChina records drop in net income and aims to make gas and LNG unit more profitable
PetroChina, the Hong Kong-listed affiliate of state-owned China National Petroleum Corp., recorded a 6 percent increase in annual revenues to 2,520 billion Chinese yuan ($350.8Bln) but net profits fell 14 percent and it disclosed plans to renegotiate some natural gas supply contracts to improve profitability.
China major CNPC boosts pipeline imports from Central Asia and Russia to complement LNG
China National Petroleum Corp, the country's largest oil and gas company, said it had increased efforts to import more pipeline natural gas from Central Asian countries and Russia and to connect the supplies to Chinese customers to complement LNG imports.
