The Chinese state oil and gas company CNOOC has stopped accepting supplies of liquefied natural gas (LNG) due to the outbreak of the new corona virus. Sources reported this to Bloomberg news agency. CNOOC would invoke force majeure.
According to the insiders, CNOOC has informed LNG suppliers such as Shell and Total not to purchase LNG for the time being. The state-owned company is the largest Chinese buyer of LNG. It would be the first time force majeure has been pronounced on the commodities market because of the corona virus. PetroChina in the same sector reported disruptions in activities at lng terminals because there are not enough employees to run those facilities at full capacity.
The case indicates that the outbreak of the infectious virus is increasingly starting to have an impact on the Chinese economy and commodity trade.
Oliver I. Kjeldsen has a corporate finance and extensive expertise in company audit. He grants us amazing insights on taxation, international affairs and friendly advice on nearly any topic of interest. His email is oliver.kjeldsen@economicinform.com
