LNG shipments to Europe in March fell 20% from a year earlier to the lowest level since September, Caspian Energy Media reports with reference to Bloomberg.
At the same time, according to the experts interviewed by Caspian Energy Media, such dynamics can remain in the medium term. This will be triggered by a number of factors: demand growth in Asia, record reserves in the EU’s underground storages, and logistics problems in the area of the Red Sea.
Meanwhile, shipments to Asia rose to about 24 million tons in March, a 12% increase from last year and the highest ever for the month. The growth was led by importers including China, India and Thailand.
Ample supply and mild winter weather have kept Asian LNG prices near the lowest level in three years, making it cost competitive with alternative fossil fuels. Swing buyers in emerging nations rushed to procure cargoes after months of limited activity.
China’s imports of the super-chilled fuel surged by 22% in March from a year earlier. Indian shipments jumped by almost 30%. Deliveries to Japan rose by 8%, reversing two months of declines.
Lower LNG prices in Asia and Europe are also making it less attractive for China and Japan’s top importers to resell shipments, instead opting to bring deliveries back to their domestic market, inbusiness.kz writes.
