In this week's Platts Market Movers Asia, Asia Head of News Mriganka Jaipuriyar highlights Asia's energy transition, the future of fuels, and the recent surge in energy prices as among the hot topics at the 37th Asia Pacific Petroleum Conference. (00:12)
Bookmark this page for our full coverage: Platts APPEC 2021
Also in Asia's commodity markets this week:
*IEA to release China carbon neutrality roadmap (00:51)
*China's aluminum hub races to meet government's power consumption targets (01:43)
*China's energy curbs to impact coal-based petrochemical plants (02:13)
*Tight supply drives up LNG prices (02:50)
*Australia's wheat output in focus amid reports of severe frost (03:16)
This Week: Rising LNG prices, the impact of China's energy consumption curbs on commodities and will the weather turn worse for Australian wheat output?
But first, a dramatic rise in energy prices, the future of fossil fuels, and the role of energy in post-pandemic recovery will be in focus when CEOs, policymakers and executives meet at the 37th Asia Pacific Petroleum Conference, or APPEC 2021, organized by S&P Global Platts over September 27-29. There will be plenty for everyone to chew on at this year's APPEC, From high-profile CEO interviews, to panel discussions on the outlook for demand, and on decarbonization.
Speaking of decarbonization, the International Energy Agency will publish a report titled An Energy Sector Roadmap to Carbon Neutrality in China on September 29. In September last year, Chinese President Xi Jinping committed to peak carbon emissions by 2030 and achieving carbon neutrality by 2060. China has been working on its own carbon neutrality roadmap, which is also expected to be released soon.
Meanwhile, you can check out our latest report on how China's energy transition is strategic to its long-term economic goals, Japan's looming climate policy changes, the challenges for OPEC and more. Visit our website to access the report.
In metals, markets will be closely watching for fresh developments in China's aluminum industry. Talks indicate that aluminum smelters in the Yunnan province, the country's aluminum hub, could further curtail their output as they race to meet the government's energy consumption targets. Smelters in Yunnan have already reduced their production capacity by 30%, partly due to low availability of hydro power.
Market participants are also monitoring the impact of energy consumption curbs on China's petrochemical plant operations. China has identified provinces that have used more energy than the planned 20% in the first half of 2021, and ordered them to reduce operations to cut power consumption. Coal-based petrochemical products such as polyvinyl chloride have been particularly affected. China's domestic PVC price has recently shot up to record highs.
Moving to LNG, Asian spot LNG prices have been hitting new highs through September and could test record highs in the coming weeks on the back of tight supply. Gas importing countries have expressed concerns about the high prices and its impact on downstream demand as well as on energy prices in the critical winter heating season.
And finally, in agriculture, markets will be watching for weather developments in Western Australia after news emerged that severe frost and poor showers in parts of that state could damage the wheat crop. Western Australia has traditionally been the largest producer of wheat in Australia. The Grains Industry Association of Western Australia recently revised its estimate for the wheat output for marketing year 2021-22 down by 6.2% to 10.6 million mt.
This brings us to our social media question for the week: Do you expect frost damage in Western Australia to dent Australia's bumper wheat crop prospects? Share your thoughts on Twitter with the hashtag PlattsMM.
Thank you for kicking off your Monday with us. See you at APPEC and have a great week ahead.