Tohoku Electric's LNG Buy Sets Asian Spot Level

Japanese utility Tohoku Electric has purchased an LNG cargo for delivery in the third week of March at a price in the low $7 per million British thermal unit (mmBtu) range, pushing Asian benchmark spot LNG prices lower, traders said.

Tohoku's tender to buy one cargo closed this week, traders said.

The price estimated by traders at around $7.20 per mmBtu sets a new benchmark for the Asian spot LNG price, its lowest since July 2010 and down from levels assessed by Reuters on Jan. 23 of $8 per mmBtu. (Reporting by Oleg Vukmanovic