LNG Tankers Divert to China as Winter Demand Spikes
China's LNG demand soars as tankers from the Americas divert to China. Liquefied natural gas (LNG) is being re-exported to China from Japan and tankers are being diverted from as far away as Brazil, with traders rushing to find cargoes in the face of a supply crunch in the world's No.2 economy as winter bites. Following an unprecedented drive to switch millions of households to natural gas from coal for heating, China's imports of LNG have surged as utilities struggle to meet soaring demand as winter gets off to a colder start than usual. "We expect to see many more LNG cargo diversions to China over the winter period," said Saul Kavonic, an analyst at energy consultancy Wood Mackenzie in Singapore. "Given China's ...
Oil Markets Adjust to Japan’s Disaster
Singapore, 16 March — The 11 March earthquake and tsunami in Japan, and the continuing nuclear crisis that they triggered, will have significant repercussions in global energy markets, according to international energy price reporting agency Argus. Japan will rely more on oil for power generation at least until the end of this year, altering regional balances for some grades of crude and providing a large boost in demand for low-sulphur fuel oil (LSFO). And it will seek additional LNG supplies. The quake and tsunami knocked nuclear plants with 11GW of generating capacity off line, and another 1.1GW nuclear plant was shut for maintenance at the time, leaving 25pc of Japan's nuclear capacity shut after the disaster.
