GLOBAL LNG-Asian spot prices slip on more supply from Malaysia, U.S.

Asian spot prices for liquefied natural gas (LNG) slipped this week as supply from Malaysia returned after a brief hiccup, though traders were keeping an eye on potential demand during a colder-than-expected winter in Northeast Asia.

The average LNG price for January delivery into Northeast Asia was estimated at about $6.40 per million British thermal units (MMBtu), down 10 cents from the previous week, industry sources said.

The price for cargoes delivered in December was estimated to be about $6.70 per mmBtu, down 10 cents to 20 cents from last week, they added.

Temperature in Beijing and Seoul is expected to be lower than average over the next two weeks, weather data from Refinitiv Eikon showed.

Loadings from the Bintulu plant in Malaysia are returning to normal after a brief disruption recently, traders said. This combined with record high exports of the super-chilled fuel from the United States were capping prices, they added.

U.S. LNG shipments to China, for instance, are expected to hit a record high in November, shiptracking data from Refinitiv Eikon showed.

Several sell tenders were issued this week with Nigeria LNG offering 11 cargoes for loading in 2021, while Russia's Novatek offered five cargoes for delivery into Europe next year, industry sources said.

Indonesia's PPT Energy offered 30 cargoes for loading from the Bontang plant over 2021 to 2023, while Russia's Sakhalin Energy offered 36 cargoes for loading between April 2022 and March 2025, they added. Angola LNG also offered a spot cargo for loading in December.

In buy tenders, India's Gujarat State Petroleum Corp (GSPC) and Indian Oil Corp were looking for a cargo each for delivery in January, while Gail (India) issued a swap tender to buy and sell a cargo over January to February, sources said. (Reporting by Jessica Jaganathan in Singapore and Sabrina Valle in Rio De Janeiro; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)

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