China imported a record high 2.085 million tonnes of LPG in the first quarter of 2015, a sign that its propane dehydrogenation (PDH) plants are finally having an impact on LPG trade.
China began establishing these plants in 2013 to meet its requirement for propylene, a plastic-making ingredient.
High-grade propane imports are feedstock for the plants.
IHS Energy's Waterborne Commodity Intelligence, which tracks seaborne LPG movements, said in a recent report that while China's import volume for April has not been officially released, figures for the month could be close to 950,000 tonnes.
IHS Energy said, "When measured against April 2014 import volumes,
