There was surprisingly little coverage of the most significant outcome of ongoing US-China trade negotiations, namely, that China has agreed to allow Chinese companies to negotiate long-term contracts to source LNG from US suppliers.
“In the longer term, the deal paves the way for a second wave of investment in U.S. LNG,” Massimo Di-Odoardo of energy research firm Wood Mackenzie was quoted by Fuelfix as saying. “Developers will now be able to target Chinese buyers directly, potentially supporting project financing. It could also support direct Chinese investment into liquefaction and upstream developments on U.S. soil.”
On the sidelines of the Belt and Road forum in Beijing, China National Petroleum Corp’s Chairman said the company will buy more US oil and is looking into investment in liquefied natural gas facilities and transport, reports Bloomberg.
“The U.S. has very rich oil and gas resources, and as China pursues a diversification of its crude supply the U.S. will of course be one of the sources.” Wang said. “We will consider exploring cooperation in areas such as jointly developing liquefied natural gas facilities and gas transport.”
This deal will have a huge impact on US LNG producers such as Cheniere Energy, Inc (LNG), a Houston-based company with the only currently approved LNG export terminal in the United States.