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IEA’s Birol issues warning about tighter energy supply next winter

Fatih Birol, the head of the International Energy Agency (IEA), has warned that there may be energy shortages next winter because there aren’t many new liquefied natural gas (LNG) products entering the market, even as China’s consumption is expected to increase this year.

 

Building more LNG terminals to replace pipeline deliveries of Russian gas is one of the many wise decisions that European governments made over the past year to ensure energy supply, Birol told Reuters on Saturday outside the annual Munich Security Conference.

 

However, he added that they were also fortunate because a mild winter tamped down demand, and economic weakness in China caused the country’s consumption to decline for the first time in 40 years.

 

‘We can officially say that we are off the hook for this winter. We should survive if there are no last-minute surprises, perhaps with a few scrapes and bruises,’ Birol said. But the real concern is, what will happen over the winter?

 

A further 23 billion cubic metres (bcm) of LNG are anticipated this year, according to Birol, who also noted that China would likely consume 80% of the extra gas, even with a modest increase in economic output as pandemic restrictions loosen.

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