China Gas +10% +++

DJ MARKET TALK: China Gas +10.2%; Moving Upstream
1030 [Dow Jones] China Gas (0384.HK) +10.2% at HK$2.48 on trading resumption, boosted by news it''ll invest CNY1.2 billion in gas liquefaction plant in Dazhou, Sichuan province. China Gas used to focus on downstream piped gas distribution, but has been strategically moving upstream to secure gas supply, says Shanghai-based analyst; Dazhou plant another step in this direction, is positive news but earnings contribution unlikely until 2010. Says stock unlikely to rise further as it''s already up 60% year-to-date; he places rating (previously Buy) under review as it has already surpassed target price of HK$2.10. Volume heavy at HK$58.3 million.

Gas verbrauch letztes Jahr war plbus 20%. in dieses Jahr wird deutlich mehr

China Gas To Tap Mongolian Coalbed Methane With GAIL,Oman Oil

HOHHOT, Inner Mongolia (Dow Jones)--Urban gas distributor China Gas Holdings Ltd. (0384.HK) said it plans to develop coalbed methane, its first such venture, in Inner Mongolia with GAIL (India) Ltd. (532155.BY) and Oman Oil Co. China Gas is also studying the possibility of selling carbon credits derived from the coalbed methane development to help subsidize the cost of running the project, said Chief Financial Officer Eric Leung. China Gas last month signed an agreement with the local government to explore and extract coalbed methane in areas totaling 2,440 square kilometers in the Nalinhe region in coal-rich Inner Mongolia. The initial exploration area would be 600 square kilometers. China Gas has already drilled two appraisal wells to a depth of 600 meters, Leung said. The total investment for the project hasn't been determined, he added. 'Coalbed methane will be our new business focus. We need to secure more gas sources for our downstream city projects,' Leung told reporters in Inner Mongolia Friday. 'GAIL and Oman Oil have been developing coalbed methane for a long time; their participation will be very helpful,' he said. GAIL now holds a 6.57% stake in China Gas, while Oman Oil holds a 7.44% stake. Coalbed methane is a form of natural gas found on top of coal deposits. China has been promoting the development of the product to address the growing natural gas shortage. GAIL and China Gas in February set up a 50:50 joint venture company, called Zhongyin Energy Co., primarily to build more compressed natural gas stations in China. Leung said he hasn't decided if the coalbed methane project will be executed through this joint venture, or start a new one.

* China Gas  raced up 4.3 percent to HK$3.63 after saying it would buy a 48 percent stake in piped-gas supplier Harbin Chongqing Gas Co Ltd for 477.3 million yuan.

GS Ups China Gas Target To HK$4.11 On Harbin Deal

Goldman Sachs ups China Gas' (0384.HK) target to HK$4.11 from HK$3.90, incorporating latest stake purchase of Harbin Gas; keeps on Buy call. House says Harbin Gas NPV at CNY2.20 billion, deal will add China Gas NPV by HK$0.2/share, based on weighted average cost of capital 8.5%. Adds Harbin gas retail prices at CNY2-3/cubic meter, higher than company's average; Harbin Gas sales volume is about 15-20% of China Gas current total sales. Notes new target implies 16.3X 2009 PER. Stock +2% at HK$3.66 under moderate volume HK$40.99 million.  

China Gas May Increase LPG Sales Sixfold on Expansion


China Gas Holdings Ltd., the Hong Kong-listed supplier of the fuel to homes and businesses on the mainland, expects liquefied petroleum gas sales to surge sixfold as the company expands its distribution network to 300 cities.

Sales of bottled LPG may rise to 3 million tons by March 2012 as the company extends sales beyond the 113 cities it currently sells the fuel in, Chief Financial Officer Eric Leung said in an interview. The shares reached a two-year high today.

The government aims to increase the nation’s use of gas to reduce reliance on more polluting coal. China Gas, which sold about 500,000 metric tons of LPG in the last financial year, will mainly target areas not linked by pipelines, Leung, 60, said at an LPG storage base on Xiaomen island off Wenzhou city in Zhejiang province on Dec. 3.