China re-embraces LNG as southern power demand surges [Gas in Transition]
China re-embraces LNG as southern power demand surges [Gas in Transition]
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Natural Gas News
China re-embraces LNG as southern power demand surges [Gas in Transition]
Summary
Chinese LNG imports could hit record levels by year’s end as rapidly rising power demand and a lack of hydropower push gas-fired generation and city gas use higher. [Gas in Transition, Volume 3, Issue 11] by: Martin Daniel
Chinese LNG imports have grown rapidly in 2023 after their unprecedented fall in 2022 (see figure 1). The drop in import volumes last year reflected the country’s economic travails, which resulted in large part from zero-COVID policies, the war in Ukraine and a depressed domestic property market. The Chinese economy grew by only 3% in 2022, well below both the 8.4% posted in 2021 and the official target for last year of at least 5.5%. As a result, total primary energy consumption grew by less than 1%. Growth was also well below trend in the electricity generation sector (see figure 2). According to data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), Chinese power production grew by only 2.2% last year. Double-digit growth in solar and wind generation, a 2.5% jump in nuclear output and a 1% increase in hydropower meant that thermal power generation g...
Related Knowledge Center: ENERGY BASICS: hydropower
Hydropower — electricity generated by turbines capturing energy from moving water — was for many years the primary contributor of renewable energy to the U.S. electricity grid. Its growth was rapid into the 1970s, and since then has offered a stable supply of power, while a declining share of all generation. For many years, hydropower was seen as clean energy and an unalloyed good, but a greater understanding of the impact of dams on ecosystems and wildlife has led to the removal of some dams. As of 2019, hydropower trails wind as a renewable source of power generation.