Taiwan embraces long-term LNG

The island nation plans to phase out nuclear energy and substitute coal for gas, but must first overcome import capacity constraints

Taiwan could sign up for more LNG on long-terms deals even after signing two SPAs to buy volumes from Qatar and Australia recently, as the world’s sixth-biggest LNG importer wants to be nuclear-free and meet half of its electricity demand from gas by next year. Taiwan’s CPC agreed with QatarEnergy in early June to offtake 4mt/yr from the North Field East (NFE) LNG expansion project for 27 years, and to buy a 5% stake in one of the six 8mt/yr liquefaction mega-trains underpinning the expansion that are scheduled to start up from 2026. Taiwan is already a major buyer of Qatari LNG and was the producer’s fifth-biggest purchaser last year, according to data compiled by Petroleum Economist. The Q