LNG imports become hot business

As internal competition rises, pressure increases for liberalization of domestic gas sector, flexibility in international supply agreements

China's growing appetite for liquified natural gas, or LNG, is set to change the market pattern as the country's energy majors rush to meet the demand.

Under a policy to encourage the use of gas for heating instead of burning coal to combat air pollution, the country's LNG demand is expected to nearly double to 68 million metric tons per year by 2023 from the 2017 figure and exceed that of Japan, the world's biggest consumer, before 2030, according to S&P Global Platts Analytics.