China's August Gas Consumption Sharply Up
China’s natural gas demand in August continued its sharp rise owing to the government’s coal-to-gas switching policy. Apparent gas consumption rose 21.6% year on year last month to 23.2bn m3, according to data published September 30 by the state planning agency, the National Development Reform Commission (NDRC).
Similar growth of 18.25% year on year was seen in July, when the country used 22.88bn m³. Demand during the first eight months of the year is up 18.2% to 180.4bn m³.
Thanks to strong demand, China’s LNG imports have been expanding this year as well after setting a record in 2017. Cumulative imports in January-August were 32.63mn mt, an increase of 47.8% from the same period a year ago. At this rate Asia's biggest economy will end up importing record volumes this year too. China's 2017 LNG imports were a record 38.13mn mt, up over 46% on year, according to the Chinese customs office.