News Energy
Asia under the spell of extremely cold winter
Large parts of Asia are experiencing the coldest winter in decades. Electricity companies in China, Japan and South Korea are busy looking for fuel for their gas-fired power plants.
The cold winter in Asia is causing a sharp rise in demand for liquefied gas (LNG). On January 12, the price for LNG reached its highest price since 2009, the start of Asian listing. Not only is gas expensive, prices for transport are also reaching record highs, according to figures from market agency S&P Global Platts. There are few ships available and the North Asian ports are also difficult to reach due to ice conditions.
The situation is now so dire that the Japanese energy company Tepco has asked steel and chemical companies whether it can buy the surplus of electricity so that it can continue to supply electricity to households. There is also an urgent appeal to companies and households to use energy efficiently.
Falling oil stock
The US energy agency, the US Energy Information Administration (EIA), forecasts a recovery in oil demand in the medium term. The EIA announced this this week. There is some uncertainty about the permanent economic damage caused by the corona crisis. Any extension of the lockdowns also makes the EIA cautious in their forecast. Despite this, they expect oil consumption to increase in 2021 and 2022.
In 2020, the average oil consumption was 92,2 million barrels per day, 9 million barrels per day less than in 2019. For this year, consumption is expected to grow by 5,6 million barrels per day and consumption will increase further in 2022. at 3,3 million barrels per day.
Production cannot keep up with rising demand. Saudi Arabia's decision to pump less oil in February and March 2021, in particular, has a major impact on supply. The EIA expects global oil reserves to decline by 2021 million barrels per day in 0,6. The agency expects an average spot price for Brent crude of $2021 a barrel for 53. That's $11 a barrel more than the average price in 2020.
Jurphaas Lugtenburg
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