QINGDAO -- China's self-developed largest liquefied natural gas (LNG) storage tank, with a holding capacity of 270,000 cubic meters, went into operation in the coastal city of Qingdao in east China's Shandong Province on Nov 2.

The LNG storage tank, with a diameter of 100.6 meters and standing 55 meters high, is large enough to hold a C919 passenger jet.
By far, it has been the first large-sized LNG storage tank built with the fastest speed in China.

"During the construction process, we have developed a complete set of technology for building the 270,000 cubic meter full-capacity LNG storage tanks, which has dramatically enhanced our working efficiency. At the same time, we have increased the use of domestically-developed equipment in building the tank, raising the proportion of domestically-developed equipment therein to 95 percent, the highest level for all LNG storage tanks in China," said Wu Bing, manager of the Qingdao Liquefied Natural Gas Company, a subsidiary corporation of the Sinopec Tianranqi Company.

"The operation of the storage tank has enabled the reception and transfer capacity of the Qingdao LNG Receiving Terminal to reach 11 million tons and its gas supply capacity to 16.5 billion cubic meters, making it one of the world's 10-million-ton-grade LNG receiving terminals," Wu said.

It is estimated that the super-sized storage tank adds an additional gas storage capacity of 165 million cubic meters to the Qingdao LNG Receiving Terminal, which can meet the demand of 2.16 million households for gas supply for five consecutive months during the heating season.