PetroChina imports 65,000 t LNG from spot market to ease domestic tight gas supp

BEIJING, Jan. 4, 2010 (Xinhua News Agency) -- PetroChina (PTR.NYSE; 00857.HK; 601857.SH) has imported 65,000 metric tons (tonnes) of LNG from the spot market in a bid to ease tight domestic gas supplies.

The imported gas was injected into the Shanghai LNG terminals of CNOOC and Shenergy, thereby supplying the municipality's towngas network, dampening its demand from PetroChina's first West-to-East pipeline and ensuring more supplies to other en route provinces, including Henan, Anhui, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Hunan, and Hubei.

PetroChina did not reveal how much it paid, but market estimates put the amount somewhere between 7 and 9 US dollars per MMBtu, more expensive than imports under the term contract.

PetroChina has already put its second West-to-East pipeline into trial operation, which is expected to greatly alleviate the country's natural gas tight supply in 2010.