China's natural gas supply security under the background of "One Belt and One Road" energy investment

The achievement of the "Belt and Road Initiative" is the most remarkable in the field of energy cooperation and identifying the influences of its investment environment on China's natural gas supply security is of great significance to effectively avoid overseas natural gas investment mistakes and ensure national energy security. A natural gas investment risk evaluation system was constructed from six dimensions of 26 indicators, and the change of China's natural gas investment risks in 31 countries along "One Belt and One Road" was quantitatively studied using the entropy weight-fuzzy comprehensive evaluation model. The natural gas supply security indicator (SSI) measurement system containing nine indicators was constructed. As for China's natural gas investment in 31 countries along "One Belt and One Road", China shall primarily consider resource potential and secondarily business environment, environmental constraint, economic environment, political environment, and bilateral relationship. It is necessary to actively pay attention to the change of the natural gas investment risk level in the countries along "One Belt and One Road". While paying attention to the resource potential and business environment in the target country of natural gas investment, energy cooperation should be carried out with economic and trade cooperation as the support, to form a strategic energy cooperation partnership with the countries along "One Belt and One Road". While actively reducing overseas natural gas investment risks and ensuring domestic natural gas supply security, it is necessary to break through the technological barriers, increase domestic natural gas production and reduce external dependence. In the environment of the outbreak of COVID-19 and the large-amplitude fluctuation of international oil price, more attention shall be paid to establishing the benefit community of petroleum cooperation with the countries along "One Belt and One Road", promote the construction of the natural gas trade and transaction center of "One Belt and One Road", communicate with important natural gas supply and consumption areas (including Russia, five central Asian countries, Japan & Korea, southeastern Asia and Australia) and construct the natural gas security mechanism in an open environment.