SHANGHAI—LNG will become a big part of China-U.S. trade once tensions are properly resolved between the two countries, a senior executive from China National Offshore Oil Corp (CNOOC) said on April 3.
LNG will also continue to dominate China's natural gas imports, already accounting for 60% of its gas imports last year, said CNOOC Vice President Li Hui on the sidelines of the LNG2019 conference in Shanghai.
CNOOC is China's largest investor in LNG facilities and its largest buyer of LNG.
China has since 2017 become the world's second-largest LNG buyer after Japan as gas demand surges under a government push to switch users from coal to cleaner burning gas.
China and the U.S., the world's top two economies, are moving closer to a final trade deal after months of tough negotiations.
If the trade spat is resolved, China could increase U.S. LNG, crude oil and soybean purchases to help narrow Washington's trade deficit with Beijing.
"For China-U.S. LNG trade you have to look at the big trends, and at the trade frictions. If this problem can be solved appropriately, LNG trade could be very big," Li said.
Sinopec Corp, China's No.2 oil and gas firm, is ready to sign a 20-year LNG supply agreement with Cheniere Energy once the two countries end their trade dispute, Reuters has reported.
The United States, the world's fastest-growing gas exporter thanks to surging output from shale fields, is still facing competition from rival exporters such as Qatar and Australia.
Peter Coleman, chief executive of Australia's Woodside Petroleum, told reporters in Shanghai that the endgame in a well-supplied global LNG market is "all about prices."
"China has learned from the current issues with the United States that diversity of supply is very important," he said.
Recommended Reading
Ozark Gas Transmission’s Pipeline Supply Access Project in Service
2024-04-18 - Black Bear Transmission’s subsidiary Ozark Gas Transmission placed its supply access project in service on April 8, providing increased gas supply reliability for Ozark shippers.
Scathing Court Ruling Hits Energy Transfer’s Louisiana Legal Disputes
2024-04-17 - A recent Energy Transfer filing with FERC may signal a change in strategy, an analyst says.
Balticconnector Gas Pipeline Will be in Commercial Use Again April 22, Gasgrid Says
2024-04-17 - The Balticconnector subsea gas link between Estonia and Finland was damaged in October along with three telecoms cables.
Targa Resources Ups Quarterly Dividend by 50% YoY
2024-04-12 - Targa Resource’s board of directors increased the first-quarter 2024 dividend by 50% compared to the same quarter a year ago.