China plans to produce 181 billion cubic meters (17.5 Bcf/d) of gas this year, only 1.9% higher than last year, the National Energy Administration (NEA) said this week. The modest growth rate is a response to reduced gas consumption as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. For comparison, gas output rose by 11.5% last year and the average annual growth rate from 2006 to 2018 was 9.5%. According to the National Bureau of Statistics, China’s gas output during the first five months of this year was 10.1% higher than in the same period of 2019 (IOD Jun.16’20). Almost all of China’s gas storage capacity is full and gas sales have been weak as the pandemic reduced gas demand from the country’s export-oriented manufacturing sector.
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