ExxonMobil inks supply deal with Zhejiang Energy for 1m tons of LNG

A ship unloading LNG in Zhoushan, Zhejiang province. [Photo by Yao Feng/For China Daily]

US-based ExxonMobil Corp announced a sales and purchase agreement with Zhejiang Provincial Energy Group for liquefied natural gas supply on Monday, under which Zhejiang Energy is expected to receive 1 million metric tons of LNG annually over 20 years. 

"This sales and purchase agreement represents an important milestone and provides a solid foundation for our strategic partnership with Zhejiang Provincial Energy Group and ExxonMobil shares Zhejiang Energy's vision in developing a major LNG gateway in the Ningbo-Zhoushan region," said Peter Clarke, senior vice-president of LNG at ExxonMobil. 

This is also part of Zhejiang province's efforts to further expand its LNG terminal receiving capacity, cooperating with foreign oil and gas companies, to help quench the nation's growing thirst for clean fuel amid green push. 

China imported more than 53 million tons of LNG last year, reaching a new historic high by accounting for 60 percent of total natural gas imports, Zhang Jianhua, head of the National Energy Administration, said earlier. The country has also been stepping up construction of its LNG infrastructure facilities in recent years. 

Analyst said terminals, being a core infrastructure of the LNG import trade, have attracted many private companies in recent years amid China's rising demand for the cleaner fuel.

Li Li, research director at energy consulting company ICIS, said that the LNG terminal sector will be more open in the province and nationwide for both private and foreign players as oil and gas infrastructure and pipelines are undergoing reform.

The chances are high that there will be more privately owned and operated LNG import terminals, in addition to the current LNG receiving terminals for imports, mostly dominated by the State-owned companies including China National Offshore Oil Corp, China Petroleum and Chemical Corp and China National Petroleum Corp, she said.