Immature spot market a hurdle to Singapore's bid for LNG pricing dominance

Singapore

EVEN as Singapore made several strides towards cementing its status as a hub for liquefied natural gas (LNG) in 2016, the longer-term ambition of gaining pricing dominance in the super-cooled gas remains out of reach - at least for now - no thanks to an immature spot market that isn't quite ready yet for an Asian pricing benchmark.

Still, with the spot, or short-term, market growing further in the past year, and expected to continue on the same trajectory in the next few years, market observers foresee an Asian pricing benchmark to be established in the next few years.

The LNG industry in Asia has traditionally been reliant on decades-long contracts linked to oil prices, but m…