A buyer’s LNG market
Demand may be set to surge, but Asia’s largest gas importers remain firmly in control
Asia's liquefied natural gas suppliers are becoming increasingly willing to provide more flexible terms to buyers to maintain a foothold in a market in which supply will outstrip demand until at least the middle of the next decade. Global LNG demand is forecast to rise by more than 30%, to 353.43m tonnes a year between 2016 and 2020, according to Wood Mackenzie, a consultancy. Meanwhile, demand in the Asia-Pacific region alone is forecast to rise by 27% in the same period, reaching 243.25m t/y. This represents almost half of total global demand growth. Energy-hungry markets in China, India and Pakistan will drive the increases. But global LNG liquefaction capacity is likely to grow even fast
Also in this section
8 January 2026
Indonesia and Malaysia are at the dawn of breathtaking digital capabilities. Their energy infrastructure must keep up with their ambitions
8 January 2026
The next five years will be critical for the North Sea, and it will be policy not geology that will decide the basin’s future
8 January 2026
The region’s access to versatile feedstock, combined with policy support, is setting it up to meet growing demand both at home and abroad
7 January 2026
No longer can the energy source be considered a sidekick to oil in the Middle East and neither should it step aside for less convincing alternatives
