Oct 24 (Reuters) - By Gavin Maguire, Global Energy Transition Columnist
Oil markets brace for next Middle East developments
Hello Power Up readers! Oil prices continue to tread water between $70 and $80 per barrel as traders await greater clarity on a number of key issues, including supply risks in the Middle East and demand woes in top oil importer China. In Europe, natural gas prices have hit their highest levels in 10 months on geopolitical jitters. And in liquefied natural gas $(LNG)$ markets, the industry is making strides on both the demand and supply sides. More on that and more below...
LNG's growth spurt
LNG-fuelled trucking accelerates in Asia Trucking fleets in China are embracing cleaner-burning liquefied natural gas (LNG) for fuel, a trend neighbouring India wants to emulate, accelerating a decline in diesel demand and rattling suppliers to the world's biggest oil importer.Colleagues Nidhi Verma in Delhi and Colleen Howe in Beijing dig into the growing demand for LNG-powered trucks in two of the world's most important oil markets, and unravel what this might mean for diesel fuel demand.
LNG buyers call for more flexible supply While LNG demand is generally rising, Japan and other major buyers are calling for more supply flexibility in order to adapt to variable power demand, industry executives said this week.LNG suppliers such as Qatar prefer long-term contracts with buyers that can last decades to secure financing for what can be multi-billion dollar projects.However, in recent years with more producers entering the global market, buyers are seeking shorter-term contracts with flexibility to resell cargoes when their demand is low. Emily Chow and Gabriele Ng report on the details from Singapore here.Qatar LNG sales to key Asian markets confronted by rivalsDespite the rising demand trend, key LNG exporter Qatar is finding it hard to agree new deals to supply Japan and South Korea as rising competition from the U.S. and elsewhere with more flexible contract terms challenges Doha's decades-old dominance of the market.The Reuters team delve into the challenges facing Qatar and other sellers in this exclusive. India's GAIL seeks more long-term LNG import dealsAs if to underscore LNG's bright demand prospects, India's largest gas pipeline company announced this week it is seeking long-term LNG import deals amounting to 5.5 million tons per year, raising its capacity to 21 million tons per year by 2030.Singapore LNG signs deal for second LNG terminalSingapore's LNG Corporation also wants to beef up its LNG trading. The company has agreed to charter from a unit of Japan's Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) a newly built floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) as the island nation's second LNG import terminal.
Russia to use ship-to-ship LNG loadings to free up ice tankers Russia also wants more LNG business, and plans to arrange ship-to-ship transfers of LNG and gas condensate in the Barents and Bering Seas to free up more ice-class tankers for its biggest LNG producer, Novatek, a draft project document showed.
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(Editing by Marguerita Choy)
((gavin.maguire@thomsonreuters.com))
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