图中从左至右第四位发言者为壳牌液化天然气营销和交易高级副总裁 Tom Summers
图片来源：WGC官方拍摄
第29届世界燃气大会（WGC2025）期间，壳牌液化天然气营销与交易执行副总裁Tom Summers在接受中国能源报记者采访时表示，在当下全球能源转型的关键时期，天然气和液化天然气发挥着核心作用。作为中国最大的LNG供应商之一，壳牌一直致力于帮助满足中国不断变化的能源需求。
记者：作为全球最大的液化天然气进口国，中国既面临着能源安全的需求，也在加速推进其“双碳”目标。在这种背景下，壳牌是如何通过技术创新、战略合作以及脱碳举措来平衡中国市场上的短期能源需求与长期的清洁能源转型目标的呢？
Tom Summers：天然气和液化天然气在助力实现能源转型目标方面发挥着核心作用。例如，从煤炭转向天然气对减少二氧化碳排放有显著效果，因为使用天然气发电时其碳排放量比煤炭低约 50%。
天然气也是可再生能源的重要合作伙伴，近年来可再生能源项目的迅速推广也凸显了这一点。同时，可再生能源的增长目前也面临一些限制，尤其是在为难以减排的行业供电方面，因为天然气仍然是可靠的能源来源。
天然气和液化天然气行业需要通过多种方式继续实现价值链的脱碳，包括在工厂引入电气化技术，并整合碳捕获和储存技术。例如在卡塔尔的北油田东项目（North Field East）中，壳牌是该项目的合作伙伴。壳牌还正在实施其他措施，包括利用技术监测并减少甲烷排放。今年，壳牌在上游生产中已经消除了常规燃除。另外，将常规液化天然气与其他兼容燃料（如生物液化天然气）进行增量混合，并在未来将合成液化天然气纳入其中，为实现净零排放提供了途径。
记者：您如何看待当前全球天然气行业的发展状况？过去几年里，全球天然气行业发生了哪些显著的变化？
Tom Summers：液化天然气作为一种船用燃料的出现，在过去十年中，堪称一项重大成功案例。液化天然气是目前航运业可大规模使用的碳排放量最低的燃料，与极低硫燃料油相比，其温室气体排放量可减少高达23%（从原料到使用）。因此，近年来，以液化天然气为燃料的船舶数量急剧增加，到2024年，新交付的船舶中有超过 1000艘都是以液化天然气为燃料。同时，新订单中超过四分之三的船舶都被要求配备低甲烷排放发动机。展望过去的十年，壳牌公司发展了行业领先的液化天然气加注业务。如今，壳牌公司网络覆盖了12个国家的26个地点，使更多客户能够使用液化天然气作为船用燃料。
另外，液化天然气在公路运输领域也产生了影响。根据中国最新数据显示，目前每三辆重型卡车中就有一辆使用液化天然气作为动力。据官方数据，2023年印度使用压缩天然气的车辆销量增长了 50%。
记者：在能源转型的背景下，天然气作为相对清洁的能源，在全球能源结构中将发挥何种作用？贵公司在应对能源转型方面有何战略布局和措施？
Tom Summers：根据行业预测，到2040年，液化天然气的需求预计将增长约60%，这反映出其在帮助世界向更低碳能源体系转型方面将继续发挥重要作用。据伍德麦肯兹的数据，到2040年，天然气需求预计将以全球能源需求的两倍速度增长。
壳牌公司的目标是到2050年成为一家净零排放的能源企业。在气体方面，壳牌通过与生产商合作并达成协议来开启可持续增长，在增加生物甲烷的产量方面发挥了重要作用。2023年，壳牌完成了以20亿美元收购欧洲最大的生物甲烷生产商Nature Energy的交易。
壳牌还在氢气供应链的各个环节探索机会，包括生产、储存、运输以及终端客户解决方案。氢气有可能在能源转型中发挥关键作用，通过使难以实现电气化的领域（如化工、钢铁、商业公路运输、航空和航运）实现脱碳。
记者：中国天然气市场的新发展趋势是什么？贵公司如何推动国内天然气行业的可持续发展？
Tom Summers：近年来，中国在发展天然气基础设施方面取得了重大进展，并对未来有着宏伟的规划。当下，中国继续批准建设燃气发电厂，与可再生能源合作，为长期能源安全提供保障，并为电力部门降低碳强度做出贡献。预计中国在2024年和2025年的新增燃气发电容量总和将超过英国的总和。中国还在推进开发再气化和储存设施，以帮助管理其天然气需求的季节性波动。到2030年，其年产能应超过2.5亿吨。同年，中国的目标是为另外1.5亿人提供天然气连接服务。我们在其他国家看到，这样的天然气供应往往会持续下去：一旦居民区和工业区接入可靠的天然气供应，需求通常会以稳定的速度增长。
与此同时，中国国内的天然气产量也在增加。电气化、运营效率、专注于消除甲烷排放以及发展生物天然气产能，都有助于中国的天然气价值链更加可持续。
Shell is optimistic about LNG Market prospects and keen to help to meet China’s evolving energy needs—Exclusive Interview with Tom Summers, Executive Vice President of Shell LNG Marketing and Trading
During the 29th World Gas Conference (WGC2025), Tom Summers, the Executive Vice President of Shell's Liquefied Natural Gas Marketing and Trading, told a reporter from China Energy News that in the current critical period of global energy transition, natural gas and liquefied natural gas play a core role. As one of the largest suppliers of LNG to China and Shell is keen to help to meet the country’s evolving energy needs.
Reporter：As the world’s largest LNG importer, China faces both energy security demands and the accelerated pursuit of its “dual carbon” goals. Against this backdrop, how is Shell leveraging technological innovation, strategic partnerships, and decarbonisation initiatives to balance short-term energy needs with long-term clean energy transition objectives in the Chinese market?
Tom Summers：Gas and LNG have a central role to play in helping to meet energy transition ambitions. For instance, switching from coal to gas has a notable effect on reducing carbon dioxide emissions as it emits about 50% less carbon than coal when used to produce electricity. Gas is also an increasingly important partner to renewable energy and the rapid roll out of renewable energy projects in recent years has highlighted this.
The growth of renewables still faces limitations, especially in powering hard-to-abate industries for which gas continues to be a reliable source of energy. The gas and LNG industry needs to continue decarbonising the value chain in a number of ways, including introducing electrification at plants and integrating carbon capture and storage technologies, such as at Qatar’s North Field East project in which Shell is a partner. We are also implementing other measures, including using technology to monitor and reduce methane emissions, and we accomplished the elimination of routing flaring in our upstream production earlier this year. The incremental blending of conventional LNG with other compatible fuels such as bio-LNG and, in the future, synthetic LNG offers pathways to net-zero emissions.
Reporter: What do you think of the current development of the global natural gas industry? What remarkable changes have taken place in the global natural gas industry in the past few years?
Tom Summers: The advent of LNG as a marine fuel has been a major success story over the last decade. LNG is the lowest-carbon fuel currently available at scale for the shipping industry, emitting up to 23% less greenhouse gas emissions (well-to-wake) compared to very low sulphur fuel oil. In recent years, the number of LNG or dual-fuel vessels has accelerated dramatically. In 2024, new commissions took the total number of LNG-fuelled ships to more than 1,000. Significantly, over three quarters of those orders comprised vessels with low methane slip engines. Over the last decade, Shell has developed an industry-leading LNG bunkering business. Today, our network offers 26 locations in 12 countries, enabling access to LNG as a marine fuel for more customers.
In addition, LNG is also having an impact in road transportation. Recent figures from China show that one in three heavy-duty trucks sold is now powered by LNG. In India, 2023 saw a 50% rise in sales of vehicles that run on compressed natural gas, according to official figures.
Reporter: Under the background of energy transformation, what role will natural gas play as a relatively clean energy in the global energy structure? What are your company’s strategic layout and measures in dealing with energy transformation?
Tom Summers: According to industry forecasts, demand for LNG is set to grow by around 60% by 2040, which reflects its continued role in helping the world to transition to a lower carbon energy system. According to data from Wood Mackenzie, by 2040, natural gas demand is forecast to increase at double the rate of global energy demand. Shell’s target is to become a net-zero emissions energy business by 2050. Specifically related to gases, Shell has played an important role in increasing production of biomethane, by partnering with producers and reaching agreements to kickstart sustainable growth. In 2023, Shell completed its $2 billion acquisition of Nature Energy, the largest biomethane producer in Europe.
Shell is also exploring opportunities across the hydrogen supply chain, including production, storage, shipping and end-customers solutions. Hydrogen has the potential to play a key role in the energy transition, through decarbonising hard-to-electrify sectors such as chemicals, steel, commercial road transport, aviation and shipping.
Reporter: What are the new development trends of natural gas market in China? How does your company promote the sustainable development of domestic natural gas industry?
Tom Summers: China has made significant progress in developing its natural gas infrastructure and has ambitious plans for the future. In recent years, the country has continued to approve the construction gas-fired power plants, providing long-term energy security in partnership with renewables and contributing to a lower carbon-intensity electricity sector. China is expected to add more gas-fired power capacity in 2024 and 2025 combined than the UK has in total. China is also moving ahead with developing regasification and storage facilities to help manage the seasonality of its gas demand. By 2030, it should surpass 250 million tonnes per year of capacity. By the same year, the country is aiming to provide gas connections to another 150 million people. We have seen in other countries that gas supply like this tends to endure: once residential areas and industries are connected to reliable gas supply, demand usually expands at a steady pace.
In tandem, China’s domestic gas production is increasing. Electrification, operational efficiency, focusing on eliminating methane emissions and developing biomethane capacity, could help to make China’s gas value chain more sustainable.
