CNPC lost money on six LNG cargoes recently, China Business News said, citing an official identified only by his last name Hong at Jiangsu LNG Terminal, owned by CNPC unit PetroChina Co. Liu Weijiang, the Beijing-based spokesman for CNPC, couldn’t be immediately reached by telephone for comment.
China’s gas demand rises in winter because of increased heating needs. Importers including CNPC and China Petrochemical Corp. suffer losses when they buy at international rates and sell the fuel at lower domestic prices, set by the government to control inflation.
CNPC relies on spot cargoes during periods of peak demand because of its insufficient gas storage capacity, China Business News reported, citing the official. Some CNPC storage facilities in eastern China, where demand is the strongest, will only start operating in 2011-2012, the official was cited as saying.
