“When China awakes, she’ll shake the world.” Those words have been attributed to Napoleon
Bonaparte, although some historians are skeptical.1 Whoever said them first, the words have
proved prophetic in describing much of the global energy sector in recent years, from coal (China
leads the world in production and consumption) to solar panels (China leads the world in
manufacturing and deployment) to oil (China leads the world in imports). Yet in natural gas
China remained almost a bit player, with a far more modest role in global markets.

No more. In 2017, China was the world’s fastest-growing natural gas market. Consumption grew
by 15%, more than twice the rate of economic growth. Liquid natural gas (LNG) imports grew by a
staggering 46%.3 Government targets imply strong natural gas demand growth for at least the next
decade—although infrastructure constraints could limit consumption in the short and medium
terms.