An incomplete review shows that as of now, 23 provinces (autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the central government), including Beijing, Tianjin, Hebei, Shanxi, and Shandong, have successively released their "15th Five-Year Plan" proposals. A review of these documents reveals that all regions have placed the construction of a "new energy system" in an important position, and natural gas, as a clean, low-carbon, flexible, and efficient energy source, has been highlighted for its strategic position in many plans. Overall, under the dual goals of energy security and low-carbon transformation, natural gas will still play the role of a "strategic energy source" with multiple functions such as a stable cornerstone, a flexible regulator, and a key link. In the next five years, its development path will be solidly advanced along three dimensions: strengthening policy positioning, consolidating the infrastructure network, and expanding the diversified consumer market.

The role of a key link has become a consensus

Reporters noticed in their review that the 23 provincial planning proposals have formed a clear policy consensus, which is that in an era where the total energy consumption continues to grow alongside the goal of low-carbon transformation, natural gas plays an indispensable "link" role in connecting the traditional energy system with the future new energy system.

A tacit approach in these planning proposals is that, unlike the "peak" requirements set for coal and oil consumption, no similar ceiling has been set for natural gas consumption.

Such a decision-making positioning is based on multiple practical considerations.

On the technical level, natural gas power generation has excellent peak-shaving capability, which can effectively compensate for the output fluctuations of intermittent renewable energy sources such as wind power and photovoltaics, ensuring the stability of the power grid.

On the economic front, the evolution of the supply and demand pattern in the international natural gas market has created more favorable conditions for importing more low-cost resources.

In terms of energy security, the continuous improvement of domestic natural gas production and import capacity has jointly strengthened the foundation for supply security.

Wu Mouyuan, Vice President of the Economic and Technological Research Institute of China National Petroleum Corporation, once pointed out that in the next five years, fossil energy and renewable energy will develop in an integrated manner to achieve a healthy, stable and highly resilient energy system as a whole; clean energy will continue to maintain a rapid growth momentum; more than 90% of renewable energy will need to be consumed in the form of electricity, and the electrification of terminal energy consumption will also be a very important transformation direction in the future. Continue to strengthen the construction of "a national unified network"

The implementation of the strategic position of natural gas is highly dependent on the improvement of infrastructure. Recent provincial-level plans and relevant national policies all point to a more efficient, flexible, and accessible "national integrated network".

The "Measures for the Planning, Construction and Operation Management of Oil and Gas Infrastructure", newly revised by the National Development and Reform Commission and to be implemented in 2026, has the core goal of building a "national integrated network". This measure aims to strengthen the unity of planning, clearly requiring that key projects such as inter-provincial pipelines must be coordinated at the national level to avoid efficiency barriers caused by fragmented local planning, and at the same time further consolidate the responsibility for gas storage and peak regulation.

Zhang Yuqing, former deputy director of the National Energy Administration and a distinguished professor at China Dalian Senior Executive College, pointed out that China needs to increase its reserve capacity by building underground gas storage facilities and large-scale LNG storage tanks, and at the same time, can learn from the experience of the Netherlands to study the establishment of natural gas production capacity reserves.

At the provincial level, the "capillary network" of infrastructure is expanding at an accelerated pace. For instance, Guizhou Province has clearly proposed in its plans to implement a campaign to ensure that every county has access to natural gas. Coastal provinces, on the other hand, continue to advance the layout, expansion, and upgrading of liquefied natural gas (LNG) receiving terminals to enhance resource unloading and storage capacities. The coordinated development of trunk pipelines, regional branch lines, gas storage facilities, and import channels is systematically improving the country's overall capacity for the coordinated allocation and secure supply of natural gas resources.

The application potential has entered a period of full release.

According to the "Report on the Development Achievements of China's Oil and Gas Industry During the 14th Five-Year Plan Period", with the rapid development of artificial intelligence and new energy-intensive industries, it is expected that by 2060, China's electricity demand will exceed 20 trillion kilowatt-hours, doubling the level in 2025; the terminal electrification rate will reach 62%, with an average annual increase of 0.9 percentage points.

Gas-fired power generation is recognized as one of the core areas for future consumption growth and will provide flexible regulation capabilities for the new power system. Especially in regions where the proportion of installed renewable energy capacity is rising rapidly, the construction of supporting gas-fired peak-shaving units with flexible start-up and shutdown capabilities has become a practical choice to ensure the real-time balance of the power system.

Meanwhile, as the clean replacement in the transportation sector continues to deepen, the conversion of ships from oil to gas has also entered an acceleration phase. Currently, its economic efficiency and emission reduction benefits have been verified in some waterways. Some enterprises have begun to undertake large-scale orders for the conversion of inland river ships to LNG power.

In addition, the synergy between the natural gas and hydrogen energy industries will also become an important development trend. The natural gas pipeline network is regarded as a potential infrastructure for large-scale hydrogen transportation in the future, and natural gas itself is also an important raw material for large-scale production of "blue hydrogen". In practice, the path for the integrated development of the natural gas industry chain and hydrogen energy continues to expand, providing a potential path for the long-term transformation of the natural gas industry.

Although it still faces challenges such as costs and coverage in some regions, under the clear policy guidance and continuous market investment, the key role of natural gas in the construction of China's new energy system has entered a period of full release.

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