LNGpedia

By Bloomberg News

Aug. 7 (Bloomberg) — Guangdong Dapeng LNG Corp., operator of one of China’s two liquefied natural gas terminals, will receive two spot cargos from Malaysia and Australia this month, said a Chinese official with knowledge of the purchases.

The Malaysian cargo will arrive in the first half and the shipment from Northwest Shelf in Australia will be delivered later, said the official, who declined to be named because the purchases are confidential. The Dapeng terminal in southeastern China may receive two cargoes on Aug. 8 and Aug. 11, according to transmissions from ships captured by AISLive on Bloomberg.

China bought two spot cargoes in June from Russia and Malaysia and another two in May from Russia and Equatorial Guinea, customs data showed. Falling LNG prices and increased domestic demand prompted the terminal, a venture between China National Offshore Oil Corp. and BP Plc, to resume spot purchases in April after a seven-month halt.

The Australian cargo was purchased under a right set in the 25-year supply accord signed in 2003 with Woodside Petroleum Ltd., the official said. Dapeng has the ability to buy 10 percent more or less than the contracted volume under the term contract in the form of spot purchases, the official said, declining to give details on the price of the shipment.

Dapeng paid $4.3 per million British thermal units, a record low, for the Russian cargo in June, compared with an all- time high of $20.43 for an Algerian spot cargo in September.

China was able to buy spot supplies from the Northwest Shelf project after demand from other Asian buyers, including Japan and Taiwan, fell, according to the official.

A spot LNG cargo typically weighs between 55,000 and 65,000 metric tons. LNG is natural gas chilled to liquid form, reducing it to one-six-hundredth of its original volume at minus 161 degrees Celsius (minus 258 degrees Fahrenheit) for transportation by ships to destinations not connected by pipeline.