From Reuters via Investing.com (also on blogroll at right):
China Petroleum and Chemical Corp plans to sign a 20-year liquefied
natural gas (LNG) supply agreement with Cheniere Energy once China and
the United States end their trade dispute, two sources with knowledge of
the matter said on Wednesday.
Cheniere and China Petroleum and
Chemical, known as Sinopec, reached a consensus in late-2018 on
commercial terms after months of negotiations, but the signing of the
deal was held back by the ongoing trade friction between the world's top
two economies, one of the sources, who has direct knowledge of the
matter, told Reuters.
"Without the trade spat, the deal should
have been signed some time ago," the source said, declining to be named
because the matter is not public.
In recent weeks, Beijing and
Washington appear to have moved closer to a deal to end a bruising
eight-month dispute that has seen the countries slap tariffs on billions
of dollars worth of the other's good. A resolution is widely expected
to include stepped-up Chinese purchase of U.S. goods.
Sinopec
intends to buy close to 2 million tonnes a year of LNG from
Houston-based Cheniere starting 2023, the two sources added, without
giving a deal value.
Cheniere may start delivering some supplies before 2023, said the second of the two sources.
Based
on the delivered cost of U.S.-sourced supplies into east China in
January at $8.30 per million British thermal units given by Chinese
customs, the 20-year deal would amount to roughly $16 billion....MORE
