Asia's soaring gas demand opens the way for new LNG projects

Nusa Dua, Indonesia

SOARING gas demand from China, India and South-east Asia is soaking up an LNG supply glut previously expected to last for years, opening opportunity for new production from East Africa to North America that had been deemed part of the overhang.

Global liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports have risen 40 per cent since 2015, to almost 40 billion cubic metres (bcm) a month. Growth accelerated in 2017, with imports up by a fifth, largely due to China, but also South Korea and Japan.

Asia's LNG market has been saturated since 2015, following massive development that began in the early 2000s. But a gasification programme in China last year and strong economic growth across Asia have pushed up demand, contributing - along with a cold winter - to a do…