China will remain firmly at the wheel of global LNG demand growth well into the next decade, as the world’s biggest buyer is set to become even more pivotal to the market amid weaker outlooks for stalwart importers Japan and South Korea.
President Xi Jinping’s quest for blue skies in the mid-2010s awakened China as a force in the global LNG market but gas-fired power generation as a backstop for the country’s world-leading renewables buildout looks to be the primary demand driver going forward.
China is on course to consolidate its status as the top LNG buyer this year, with seaborne shipments for the first nine months up by 12% year-on-year to 57.09 mt compared with a 0.6% gain in Japan to 49.2 mt and a 6% jump for South Korea to 34 mt.
Chinese demand has been essential for global LNG market development as rapid domestic consumption of the fuel underpinned industry confidence, enabling project developers and investors targeting prime Asian markets to move forward with the development of multibillion-dollar export projects around the world.
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