Who buys imported methanol in China?

Coastal methanol-to-olefins plants in Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Shandong, which have no coal-based methanol of their own and take full cargoes, and distributors who supply formaldehyde, acetic acid, MTBE and fuel-blending users from the Yangtze delta and South China tank farms. A single olefins plant can take about 100,000 t of methanol a month.

Why did prices not double when supply was cut?

Because the marginal buyer can stop. Olefins plants running on bought methanol shut or cut runs when methanol rises faster than polyethylene and polypropylene, and inland coal-based methanol moves to the coast when the price allows. Delivered values peaked a little above USD 400 per tonne in late March 2026 and settled at USD 320 to 360, well below the posted contract prices in the rest of Asia.

Which origins can replace Gulf methanol?

Oman, which loads at Salalah and Sohar outside the strait and already supplied 21%; Malaysia and Brunei on the short haul; Trinidad, Chile, New Zealand and the US Gulf. Every offer names the producing plant and the load port, and the certificate of origin is issued at that port.

What parcel sizes and ports are workable?

Parcels of 10,000 to 20,000 t for distributors' tanks at Taicang, Zhangjiagang, Jiangyin and Nantong, and cargoes of 30,000 to 45,000 t for olefins plants with their own jetties at Ningbo and on the Jiangsu coast. Yangtze draft restrictions set the ship size for the river terminals.

Can CBIL also fix the ship?

Yes. Our chartering desk, LaycanDesk, prices chemical and product tankers for methanol, so a CFR and an FOB figure can be shown side by side.

North Asia · China

Methanol Suppliers CFR China (Taicang, Ningbo and Yangtze Ports)

The world's largest methanol import market, where coastal olefin plants set the price a cargo can bear

China declared 14,430,900 t of methanol imports in 2025 at a landed value of USD 3.94 billion, about USD 273 per tonne, after 13,484,500 t in 2024. Saudi Arabia supplied 3.29 million t (23%), Oman 3.02 million t (21%), the UAE 2.68 million t (19%), Malaysia 959,000 t (7%), Trinidad and Tobago 925,000 t (6%), Chile 4% and New Zealand 2%; Malaysia's tonnage had nearly tripled from 328,000 t in 2024. The Strait of Hormuz has been severely restricted since 28 February 2026: loadings inside the Gulf move irregularly and are confirmed cargo by cargo. Most of China's pre-restriction seaborne supply loaded inside the Gulf, and imports in January to May 2026 were 3.31 million t, 850,000 t fewer than a year earlier, with steeper falls from March to July and port inventories at their lowest in 13 years by September. Price did not follow volume all the way: delivered values rose from about USD 280 per tonne before the restriction to more than USD 400 in late March, fell back to USD 320-350 by mid-May and were about USD 360 in late August, because China's own coal-based methanol caps the price and the coastal methanol-to-olefins plants that buy imports cut runs or shut when their margin turns negative. Several of those plants in Jiangsu and Zhejiang, of 300,000 to 600,000 t a year of olefin capacity each, were shut in the second quarter and restarting in July.

Imported methanol lands at the Yangtze delta tank farms, chiefly Taicang, Zhangjiagang, Jiangyin and Nantong, and at Ningbo, with South China served through Guangdong and Guangxi. Parcels run from 10,000 t to full cargoes of 40,000 t and more for the olefin plants. Methanol is a hazardous chemical in China and the receiver holds the hazardous-chemicals registration and storage licence; the duty rate depends on the origin under China's most-favoured-nation and free-trade schedules. CBIL brokers methanol to the IMPCA reference specification (99.85% min purity, water 0.1% max) from Salalah and Sohar in Oman, Malaysia and Brunei, Point Lisas in Trinidad, Chile and the US Gulf, with SGS or Intertek certification at load and the producer named on the certificate of origin; cargoes whose origin cannot be shown from the producing plant's documents are not offered. A receiver that states its terminal, parcel size, laycan and LC-opening bank gets a firm answer; one without them gets a question first.

Need the ship as well? Our chartering desk prices methanol and chemical parcel tanker freight on LaycanDesk.

The market in figures

Declared imports: 2025: 14,430,900 t, USD 3.94 billion, USD 273/t · 2024: 13,484,500 t
Origins, 2025: Saudi Arabia 23% · Oman 21% · UAE 19% · Malaysia 7% · Trinidad and Tobago 6% · Chile 4% · New Zealand 2%
Share from Saudi Arabia, UAE and Qatar: 43% (about 519,000 t a month to replace)
2026 imports: January-May 3.31 Mt, down 850,000 t on the year; port stocks at a 13-year low in September
2026 delivered values: About USD 280/t pre-restriction · over USD 400 late March · USD 320-350 mid-May · about USD 360 late August
Discharge: Taicang, Zhangjiagang, Jiangyin, Nantong (Yangtze delta) · Ningbo · South China ports

Landed values are the importing country's declared CIF, not CBIL prices.

Questions buyers ask

Who buys imported methanol in China?: Coastal methanol-to-olefins plants in Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Shandong, which have no coal-based methanol of their own and take full cargoes, and distributors who supply formaldehyde, acetic acid, MTBE and fuel-blending users from the Yangtze delta and South China tank farms. A single olefins plant can take about 100,000 t of methanol a month.
Why did prices not double when supply was cut?: Because the marginal buyer can stop. Olefins plants running on bought methanol shut or cut runs when methanol rises faster than polyethylene and polypropylene, and inland coal-based methanol moves to the coast when the price allows. Delivered values peaked a little above USD 400 per tonne in late March 2026 and settled at USD 320 to 360, well below the posted contract prices in the rest of Asia.
Which origins can replace Gulf methanol?: Oman, which loads at Salalah and Sohar outside the strait and already supplied 21%; Malaysia and Brunei on the short haul; Trinidad, Chile, New Zealand and the US Gulf. Every offer names the producing plant and the load port, and the certificate of origin is issued at that port.
What parcel sizes and ports are workable?: Parcels of 10,000 to 20,000 t for distributors' tanks at Taicang, Zhangjiagang, Jiangyin and Nantong, and cargoes of 30,000 to 45,000 t for olefins plants with their own jetties at Ningbo and on the Jiangsu coast. Yangtze draft restrictions set the ship size for the river terminals.
Can CBIL also fix the ship?: Yes. Our chartering desk, LaycanDesk, prices chemical and product tankers for methanol, so a CFR and an FOB figure can be shown side by side.