A liquefied natural gas (LNG) is a natural gas (predominantly methane, CH4) that has been cooled down to a liquid state for ease of storage or transport without pressure. Natural gas takes up about one-fifth of its volume in its gaseous state (at standard temperatures and pressures).
It is estimated that the EU imports around 157 billion cubic metres of LNG annually - enough to cover around 40% of its total gas demands.
LNG is primarily used to simplify natural gas transport from a source to a destination. On a large scale, this is done when the source and destination are across an ocean. Currently, more than 100,000 LNG-powered vehicles are on the road in China, a global leader in LNG-powered vehicles.
Manufacturers love the fact fuel in a natural gas engine does not auto-ignite at the pressures and temperatures associated with a gasoline or diesel engine, so the design of a natural gas engine can be more flexible for their power-intensive production processes.
GLOBAL LNG TRADE
The largest LNG import capacity in the world is in Japan. By 2022, Japan's LNG import terminals would have a combined capacity of 227.7 million metric tons. This was almost twice as much capacity as the import terminals in South Korea, which ranked second. Meanwhile, China's LNG import capacity under development is expected to increase to more than 200 million metric tons in annual capacity by 2022.
Since natural gas emits the lowest amount of CO2 per unit of energy and is suitable for use in combined cycle power stations that are highly efficient, it can be considered as the least environmentally harmful fossil fuel.
This makes it an attractive energy alternative for multinational coporation giants such as McLaren Racing, who wish to reach a NetZero carbon emission status by the year 2040. Thus, the demand for LNG is high amongst many global corporates.
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