Over the last decade, China has replaced Russia as the main export destination for Central Asian gas. Due to strong gas demand in China, in the early 2020s, the Central Asia-China pipeline corridor will be used close to its 55 Bcm/year capacity. An expansion to 85 Bcm/year is possible, by construction of Line D from Turkmenistan via Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and...

China recently released its Natural Gas Development Report for 2019, a document which sets outs its plans for the sector in the years ahead.  The past two years of stellar gas demand growth have framed a narrative, at least in western markets, that China’s future demand growth will remain in double-digit percentage rates and be heavily dependent on LNG.  The...

In 2019, markets were bracing for a slowdown in China’s oil product demand growth, but grappling to quantify it given the uncertainty surrounding the US-China trade negotiations. At the same time, with the start of two new mega-refineries, markets were expecting strong crude demand, alongside a deluge of product output and exports. In this comment, we explore the following four...

The September 2019 issue of the Oxford Energy Forum looks at the uncertainties facing the LNG sector as it transitions from its traditional rigid structure to becoming a fully traded commodity. This change is happening during a period of considerable volume growth in the industry, with LNG supply expected to double between 2016 and 2020. In four sections, the publication...

In this latest OIES podcast David Ledesma discusses the prospects for the Russian LNG industry with James Henderson, who recently co-authored a paper on the subject with Vitaly Yermakov. Following the successful launch of the Yamal LNG project the Russian government has great plans for the further development of the country’s LNG sector, led primarily by Novatek but also including projects operated...

Nowadays, oil market observers often start their analysis by pointing to two sets of factors pushing the oil price in opposite directions. On the one hand, supply outages from Iran and Venezuela and the rising geopolitical risks in the Middle East as US-Iran tensions escalate are keeping an upward pressure on the oil price. On the other hand, the US-China...