BEIJING－Chinese gas distributor ENN Energy Holdings Ltd has begun operations at the first phase of its Zhoushan liquefied natural gas import terminal, ENN Vice-President Ma Shenyuan said at a commencement ceremony for the terminal on Friday.

The terminal, the first major privately owned gas import facility in China, will have an annual capacity of 3 million metric tons a year in its first phase.

The newly opened LNG terminal has received 120,000 tons of LNG since its trial launch in August, said Zhang Hao, vice-president of the company's energy trading group, in a separate speech.

The company has prepared more than 400 trucks to deliver the gas from its terminal this winter in order to meet strong demand, he said.

Analysts said easier access to private terminals would help China offtake more cargo.

ENN, a privately owned energy player, has been strengthening its vertically integrated position in China's gas industry, said Na Min, a senior analyst for oil and gas at Bloomberg New Energy Finance.

"It operates city gas distribution projects in the downstream segment and now has direct access to global LNG resources through its newly commissioned Zhoushan LNG terminal," she said.

Last winter, many villages were left without gas supplies because of a surge in demand because of China's clean energy push. The government switched millions of Chinese homes to gas heating from coal to reduce air pollution, but was caught out by the increased consumption.

ENN has signed long-term deals, including sales and purchase agreements, with Chevron Corp and Australia's Origin Energy, and also has an agreement to buy LNG from Total SA. The deals total 1.5 million tons of LNG per year.

According to Na, as China pursues environmental goals, the momentum of more natural gas imports is expected to continue during the upcoming heating season. The country's oil and gas companies will apply all measures possible to ensure a relatively stable supply, and Australia, Southeast Asia and Qatar will likely be the preferred choices, she said.

China's gas consumption grew 15 percent in the first half of 2018 from a year earlier, which led to a 50 percent surge in LNG imports, pushing them to a historic high of 24 million tons in the first half of 2018.

China Daily-Reuters