By Sing Yee Ong and Stephen Stapczynski

Feb 12, 2026 (Bloomberg) – A shipment of liquefied natural gas (LNG) that was reloaded in China, the world's largest LNG buyer, is on its way to Europe. This unusual move emphasizes Europe's efforts to replenish its low gas supplies.

The tanker Seapeak Glasgow loaded its cargo at the Zhejiang Ningbo terminal in late January and is currently heading south towards Singapore, with Europe as its next stop, according to ship-tracking data from Bloomberg. The vessel tracking firm Kpler also confirmed that the ship is moving toward Europe.

If it arrives in Europe, this will be the first time in four years that reloaded LNG from China has been sent to the continent. This year, Europe’s LNG imports have reached a seasonal high as the region seeks to replace decreased supplies from Russian pipelines following the invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

However, it's not certain that the Seapeak Glasgow will deliver the fuel to Europe, as it is not uncommon for ships to change their routes or be sold to other buyers.

Despite being the largest importer of LNG, China's demand has decreased in the past year as local buyers have started using cheaper alternatives. Chinese importers have kept high inventory levels throughout the winter and have chosen to resell LNG shipments to other Asian countries.

Recently, CNOOC Ltd., a Chinese company, has sold shipments for reloading. In addition, Australia has sent three cargoes to South America or Europe in the last month. These movements indicate that demand in Asia is still weak, and LNG will be shipped to buyers who are willing to pay higher prices.