Letter from China: LNG deals show pragmatism in US-China ties

A US LNG project developer has signed the first long-term supply contracts with a Chinese buyer in nearly four years

Recent long-term LNG deals between the US and China suggest that the two rivals can still cooperate if interests align. Venture Global LNG—developer of the 10mn t/yr Calcasieu Pass and 20mn t/yr Plaquemines export facilities in Louisiana—signed two sales-and-purchase agreements (SPAs) with China’s state-controlled Sinopec, according to a letter the American company filed with the US Department of Energy at the start of October. The 20-year deals, one for 2.8mn t/yr and the other for 1.2mn t/yr, are by far the largest contracts by volume for US LNG agreed to by a single Chinese entity. Venture Global also signed a three-year deal to supply 1mn t/yr to Unipec, the trading arm of Sinopec, from