In the light of recent rises in crude oil prices, from 25 dollars a barrel to more than 70 dollars a barrel since 2002, when the ALNG commercial deal was agreed upon, some of the investors involved in the 25 billion dollar project, consisting of supplying gas to the Chinese Guangdong Dapeng LNG Company, intensified pressures on the Australian Prime Minister John Howard to renegotiate liquefied natural gas supplying prices.

The investors used the example of BP-led Indonesian Tangguh project, in which officials have performed a renegotiation of supplying prices, raising them from 25 dollars a barrel to 38 dollars a barrel for its LNG, yet the Australian premier could not be persuaded.

At an official ceremony celebrating the LNG terminal at Dapeng, situated in the southern part of the Guangdong province, John Howard assured his Chinese official counterparts that Australia will honor the deal, as it always respects its commitments initially agreed upon, no matter what changes occur in the meantime: "Australia is a stable, reliable, competitive supplier of energy. We deliver our commodities on time, we deliver them safely and we deliver them according to the pre-arranged and agreed price".

After highlighting the fact that his country has received the honor of having plentiful energy resources, which are currently in great demand from developing countries, Howard praised the impressive economic boom performed by China, whose improvement will make the whole world benefit:" The world has much to benefit from a fully and openly engaged China and we welcome without any trepidation the economic involvement in China in the growth and improvement of living standards in our own region".