Power to the buyers
LNG importers now have the upper hand when signing new supply deals – and even rejigging existing contracts
THE WORLD of liquefied natural gas has been turned upside down. A business that was for decades run according to the whims of sellers is now in the palm of buyers. With a flood of supplies from new projects in Australia and the US about to hit the market, the established LNG market is fraying. Buyers are creating new types of deals, sometimes in new importing countries, and LNG exporters are being dragged into a new era of flexible contracts. China’s biggest energy company has joined India in seeking to renegotiate long-term LNG supply deals. CNPC wants to rework the prices in its contract with Qatar, its chairman Wang Yilin said at the beginning of March. India’s Petronet stole a march in D
Also in this section
16 April 2026
Demand for oil is falling because supply cannot meet it, not because it is no longer required
16 April 2026
The continent has an immediate opportunity to make the most of its energy resources by capturing gas that is currently slipping away
15 April 2026
The continent is seeing political pushback to climate plans, corporate reassessment of transition goals and rising supply risk in a fractured global order
15 April 2026
The Middle East energy crisis may turn out to be pivotal to the industry’s long-term expansion, but significant challenges still stand in its way
