London-listed Fortune Oil PLC, which focuses on investments and operations in oil and gas supply and infrastructure projects in China, said yesterday it has set up a joint venture with Tianjin Gas Group Co to supply liquefied natural gas in Tianjin.

In a statement, Fortune Oil said it holds a 60% stake in the JV, while Tianjin Gas has the remaining 40% stakes.

Tee Kiam Poon, CEO of Fortune Oil, noted that launch of the JV is a further step to expand its presence in China, adding that LNG imports will be a major source of Chinese natural gas supply.

Tianjin Gas, which supplies gas to 2 million customers with a 95% market share and 9,000 kilometers of gas pipelines, is the major shareholder of a large LNG terminal. The terminal is expected to import 2.2 million tons of LNG per year in the initial phrase to a capacity of 6 million tons per year from 2015.

In 2011, China imported more than 12 million tons of LNG, mainly from the Middle East, Australia and Indonesia, and the annual LNG imports would increase to over 30 million tons by 2015, said analysts.