Kwok W Wan, LONDON: Chinese truckers and bus drivers are turning to liquefied natural gas (LNG) and away from dirty diesel, creating a billion-dollar boom in small-scale LNG plants.
Black & Veatch (B&V), which is delivering LNG production technology in China, has seen demand for small-scale plants jump tenfold over the past year. And the trend will continue, driven by vehicle-fuel demand, predicts the US technology company.
“We usually get one or two projects a year [in China], but in a three-month period, we secured five. This rapid pace will continue for several years. We have 10 projects on the list now, with three active,” B&V vice-president for LNG technology Brian Price told Petroleum Economist. “We’re seeing, with the last five projects, growing demand for motor fuel, especially for large vehicles, such as buses and trucks.”
Each small-scale LNG project costs between $50 million and $100 million to develop and...