China: First LNG bonded bunker warehouse in Zhoushan begins operation
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by Admin
The first LNG bonded warehouse in the Zhoushan area of China (Zhejiang) Pilot Free Trade Zone on Wednesday (25 May) officially started operations with the first unloading of LNG to a storage tank.
According to the Zhoushan Customs and Zhoushan Immigration Inspection Department, tanker Asia Excellence transporting about 67,000 metric tonnes (mt) of imported LNG berthed at the ENN (Zhoushan) LNG‘s receiving terminal.
After inspection by customs and border agencies, the LNG was successfully unloaded to a 160,000 cubic metre (m3) bonded storage tank of the receiving terminal.
The authorities said this initiative will bring Zhoushan one step closer to its goal of becoming a global bonded bunkering centre.
Previously, Zhoushan had to transport LNG from bonded warehouses at other ports in other regions to conduct bunkering for international ships, leading to the transportation cost being relatively high.
With the bonded warehouse of ENN (Zhoushan) LNG starting its operations, a LNG bunkering vessel can directly lift about 8,500 mt of bonded LNG from the warehouse in one operation , which can refuel more than four international ships.
“This not only improves the refuelling efficiency and reduces the operating costs, but also promotes the development of Zhoushan’s LNG industry chain into a supply hub,” said the Zhoushan Customs and Zhoushan Immigration Inspection Department.
It was reported that the third phase of the ENN (Zhoushan) LNG’s receiving terminal is scheduled to be put into operation in August this year. By then, the four newly built storage tanks will expand the gas storage capacity of the receiving station to 1.52 million m3.
To ensure efficient customs clearance for berthing operations, the customs and border inspection have optimised the inspection process by connecting with agencies and terminal parties in advance, completing ship pre-inspection through the “one-stop” system, and carry out on-board inspections as soon as possible to ensure that incoming ships can be inspected and operated upon arrival.
Manifold Times previously reported Zhoushan establishing the first LNG bonded warehouse in Zhoushan.
This came following approval of the TK04 storage tank of ENN (Zhoushan) LNG in Zhoushan on 31 March, becoming a certified bonded warehouse.
Related: China: Zhoushan establishes first LNG bonded warehouse to improve bunkering services
Photo credit: China (Zhejiang) Pilot Free Trade Zone
Published: 28 May, 2025
