ENGIE and Shaanxi Houde Tongxing (HD) have signed an investment agreement in Yulin, Shaanxi Province, China.
The agreement will establish a joint venture (JV), which aims to build a large LNG industrial base in the North-West region of China. The JV will also develop LNG downstream activities.
The natural gas for the LNG industrial base will be provided by CNPC and Sinopec’s long-distance natural gas transport pipeline. The project construction is divided into two phases. The first phase, with a capacity of 0.25 million tpy of LNG, will start its commercial operation in July 2017. The second phase, with a capacity of 0.5 million tpy of LNG, will be in commercial operation in February 2018.
The total estimated investment for these two phases is approximately €200 million. In early 2016, the JV will also launch a study into the construction of an LNG storage centre in Yulin.
Jean Marc Guyot, the President and CEO of ENGIE China, said: “This is ENGIE’s first LNG Industrial base in Asia, we put high expectations in it and we look forward to working closely with a key Chinese partner and a key Chinese province of the gas industry. The signing of this contract underscores ENGIE’s ambition to pursue its development in China, namely by being a key player of the Chinese gas midstream, leveraging on the Group’s LNG sources, experience of gas infrastructures and energy services, and engineering know-how, and seizing opportunities in the growing China LNG market. Our vision is to offer sustainable solutions to China’s urbanisation and industry.”
Edited from press release by Callum O'Reilly