In the first half of this year, Chinese demand of natural gas increased by 16.8%, and investment in gas supply infrastructure increased by 10.2%, according to the National energy administration.
According to a recent report of the International Energy Agency “Gas-2018”, in the period from 2017 to 2023 the demand of China in “blue fuel” will increase by almost 60% — up to 376 billion cubic meters. At the same time, next year China will become the largest gas importer, ahead of Japan.
The Chinese Academy of Social Sciences also predicted a solid growth in gas demand this month. According to her estimates, in 2030 the annual demand will reach 520 billion cubic meters and in 2050 — 800 billion cubic meters of natural gas.
In 2017, gas consumption in China increased by 15.3% to 237.3 billion cubic meters, according to the national Commission for development and reforms. Compared to 2016, pipeline imports increased by 8.8% to 41.69 billion cubic meters, with the huge share of imports provided by Turkmenistan.
China is increasing the purchase of natural gas from abroad, deliveries in 2018 are carried out on an increasing basis, there is a significant increase compared to the same period last year, which is especially noticeable in regions with strong air pollution, commented for China Daily the head of the Department of development planning of the national energy administration Li Fulon.
According to the official, the jump in the consumption of natural gas in many regions, in particular in the Northern provinces, is caused by the transition of heating systems to gas against the background of the country’s refusal of coal in favor of environmentally friendly fuel.
