The publication noted that Oman had asked Union Fenosa and Gas Natural, the two Spanish customers importing the liquefied natural gas (LNG), to forfeit their deal and split the extra profit from the Asia deal with them.
Middle East-based LNG producers are taking advantage of their strategic geographic location, with comparable access times to the Atlantic and Pacific markets, by working on the price differential between the two markets, according to the news source.
Such arbitrage is also signaling the emergence of an LNG spot-trading market, contrary to the long-term deals that were previously the order of the day, reported the Financial Times.
The growth of spot-trading is seen as dependent on the availability of carriers, with an estimated four-fifths of the world’s vessels locked into long-term contracts with energy firms. With the number of LNG carriers-at-sea expected to increase to 400 by 2011, from 260 deployed in 2008, a surge in LNG spot-trade can be expected, according to the Financial Times.
