OREANDA-NEWS. July 05, 2011. China's Dapeng LNG Company, the country's first and largest importer of liquefied natural gas, aims to lift sales of the super-cooled fuel by about 14 percent this year, a company official said, as demand rises strongly.

The Shenzhen-based company would receive 96 cargoes of the cleaner-burning fuel, a total of 6.64 million tonnes, this year, of which about 55 percent would come from Australia through a long-term supply pact, a company official told an industry seminar.

Dapeng would source the remainder from a pool of suppliers including Qatar and European energy company Total SA , the official said.

Dapeng, a joint-venture between CNOOC Ltd and BP Plc , aims to market 6.7 million tonnes of LNG this year versus last year's 5.87 million tonnes.

China shipped in 9.36 million tonnes of LNG last year, nearly 70 percent above 2009, customs data showed.