Asia LNG swap market to be driven by smaller consumers

Markets in north Asia have been the main driver of LNG demand but it is the emergence of smaller scale projects across southern Asia that is likely to dictate the size and shape of a liquid derivative market – but only in the long term

Energy firms wishing to enter the liquefied natural gas (LNG) sector need deep pockets. The costs required construct the necessary facilities to extract, liquefy, transport and regasify are substantial – ExxonMobil's Papua New Guinea LNG project will start production in May following a $19 billion investment by the US firm, for example.

And the timelines involved are long: each liquefaction terminal takes around four years to come online.

"Compare LNG to the Singapore fuel oil market: it doesn't