日本从中国进口首批LNG现货

中国石化新闻网讯 据路透社8月29日东京报道，日本7月从中国进口了第一批LNG现货。作为全球最大的LNG进口国，在国内竞争激烈的情况下，日本的公用事业公司正在寻找新的供应商，并试图降低成本。

此次输送表明，亚洲LNG市场的灵活性日益增强。随着国内天然气使用量激增，中国已成为全球第二大LNG进口国。然而，在夏季天然气消费放缓之际，中国已开始重新出口液化天然气，日本买家正大举采购这些货物，以减少燃料支出。

日本财务省周四公布的数据显示，这批液化天然气的交付价格为5.68美元/百万英热单位，低于日本7月份液化天然气平均9.50美元/百万英热单位的进口成本。

日本官方贸易统计数据显示，这是自1988年日本政府开始公布进出口数据以来，日本从中国进口的第一批LNG现货。

随着来自美国和澳大利亚的新一轮供应涌入市场，近几周亚洲LNG现货价格已跌至接近历史纪录的低点。

LNG现货市场价格的下跌，正促使日本公用事业公司对与油价挂钩的传统长期合约进行更加严格的价格审核。

作为这种转变方式的一部分，他们还在现货市场购买更多液化天然气。日本公用事业公司此前更倾向于稳定供应，而非价格，部分原因是他们可以将成本转嫁给消费者。

日本能源市场的自由化意味着，老牌的天然气和电力公司因新竞争者的加入正在流失客户，因此他们正努力削减成本。

随着夏季气温达到峰值，日本电力公司也一直忙于补充用于空调发电的燃料库存。

业内消息人士本周对路透社表示，北陆电力公司已购买了一批将于11月份交付的LNG 现货，同时北海道电力公司也正在寻求一批将于同月交付的LNG现货。

裘寅 编译自 路透社

原文如下：

Japan imports first LNG cargo from China as utilities try to cut costs

Japan imported its first cargo of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from China in July as utilities from the world’s biggest buyer of the fuel seek out new suppliers and try to lower costs amid tough competition at home.

The shipment illustrates the increasing flexibility of the Asian LNG market. China has become the world’s second-largest LNG buyer amid a surge in domestic gas usage. However, the country has started to re-export shipments amid a lull in summer gas consumption and Japanese buyers are scooping up the cargoes to reduce their fuel expenses.

It was delivered at $5.68 per million British thermal units (mmBtu), below Japan’s average import cost of $9.50 per mmBtu for LNG during July, according to Ministry of Finance data released on Thursday.

A search through Japan’s official trade statistics show it is the first LNG cargo from China since 1988, when the Japanese government started publishing import and export figures.

Prices for spot LNG in Asia have sunk to near record lows in recent weeks as a wave of new supply from the United States and Australia comes onto the market.

The decline in spot market prices for liquefied natural gas (LNG) is pushing Japanese utilities in Japan to be more aggressive in price reviews built into traditional long-term contracts linked to oil prices.

They are also buying more LNG on the spot market as part of this shift in approach. Japanese utilities have previously favored stability of supply over price, partly because they could pass on the costs to consumers.

The liberalization of Japan’s energy markets means the old guard gas and electric utilities are losing customers to new entrants and they are trying to cut costs.

With summer temperatures peaking, Japanese electric utilities have also been rushing to replenish stocks of the fuel to use to generate power for air conditioning.

Hokuriku Electric has bought a spot LNG cargo for delivery in November, while Hokkaido Electric is seeking a cargo for delivery the same month, industry sources told Reuters this week.