(Yicai Global) Nov. 3 -- China Oil and Gas Pipeline Network, the country's largest midstream oil and gas company, has stopped expanding its first liquefied natural gas terminal in southwestern China after a fire broke out and killed five people, leaving three people severely injured and one missing.

The fire ignited during storage tank maintenance and was put out but the cause is still unknown, the Beijing-based firm, also known as PipeChina, said in a press release yesterday. PipeChina was established in December 2019 to hold three national oil companies' pipeline assets.

The Beihai LNG terminal began construction in July 2013 and started trial operation in March 2016. The current capacity is 6 million tons of LNG a year. The main target markets are the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, as well as Guangdong, Yunnan, and Guizhou provinces, according to public data.

Editor: Emmi Laine