PetroChina, a subsidiary of the much larger state-held oil firm, PetroChina Co., has just signed a deal with Qatar's Qatargas Operating Co. for a supply contract of 3.4 million tons of liquefied natural gas (LNG) to be exported annually to China for the next 22 years as the brewing trade war between Beijing and Washington continues to take form.
This would be the biggest LNG supply contract deal Beijing has signed with a major foreign oil company - a move which, according to several political experts, serves as a statement by the Asian powerhouse to its Western counterpart that the former has no need of the latter's fuel supply anymore.
Under the 22-year purchase agreement, a report from Reuters indicated, the Qatari state-owned company will supply China with LNG from its Qatargas 2 project. This is a joint venture project between Qatar Petroleum, Exxon Mobil Corp. and Total SA.
The first cargo of the said fuel source is slated to be delivered before the month of September ends.
The deal, meanwhile, provides Qatargas the flexibility in transporting the LNG supply to several terminals across China including those in Dalian of Liaoning Province, Jiangsu, Tangshan of Hebei Province, and Shenzhen in Guangdong Province.
In a statement quoted over the Gulf Times, President and CEO of Qatar Petroleum and Chairman of Qatargas, Eng. Saad bin Sherida al-Kaabi, said that the Chinese contract is a landmark agreement which underscores Qatar's capability to ensure a steady supply of energy to the different parts of the world, with Asia in particular.
The chief executive further reiterated the Gulf State's unique position as a major global producer of LNG. The company and the state, according to al-Kaabi, is more than happy to support China in its quest to reduce its coal consumption as a means to power its ever-growing industries.
As specified in a previous report from this site, the Xi Jinping administration has been hard at work to improve the air quality around the country. One of the government's environmental flagship campaigns is to bring back the blue skies in China.
Qatar's Sheikh Khalid bin Khalifa al-Thani, meanwhile, chimed in to express his pleasure with the China-Qatar LNG agreement which he considered as a means to further strengthen the partnership and cooperation between Qatargas and PetroChina.
China's Growing LNG Demand
A previous report revealed China's growing need for cleaner fuel source which could peak between 20 to 25 percent before this year ends.
According to the Qatari Energy Ministry, and as quoted over at Reuters, the figure could balloon to a much larger rate given China's increasing demand for LNG.
