Objective In the context of China’s “dual carbon” strategic goals, natural gas plays a crucial bridging role. Due to its high degree of marketization and flexible operation, LNG effectively balances natural gas supply and demand. LNG terminals serve as key hubs in the global LNG supply chain. With steady industry growth, China has established 32 LNG terminals, boasting an annual receiving capacity of 1.4 000×10⁴ t/a. As the LNG terminal sector continues to expand, innovative development is essential to meet evolving demands under the new strategic landscape.

Methods Through a literature review, the development trends of China’s LNG industry, industry data on LNG terminals, and relevant national regulations and policies issued in recent years were systematically sorted out. The risks and challenges facing the LNG terminal industry were analyzed, and an “industry background–development status–risks and challenges–response strategies” analytical framework was constructed to propose future development pathways for LNG terminals.

Results Operators of LNG terminals in China include central and local state-owned enterprises as well as private companies, reflecting a diversified development trend. Fair access for third parties has been largely achieved, service products centered on LNG terminal window periods have been established, and initial marketization has been realized. Currently, China’s LNG terminals face three major challenges: increasing external environmental uncertainty, industry overcapacity due to concentrated commissioning, and limited diversity of service offerings.

Conclusion To promote a more efficient, fair, and open industry, the following strategies are recommended for LNG terminals: (1) actively expand emerging high-growth businesses such as gas storage, LNG fueling for vehicles and ships, and bonded transfer; (2) develop a multi-energy coupling system integrating hydrogen, carbon dioxide, green electricity, and cold energy, incorporating LNG terminals into a new mass-energy network; (3) establish unified market products and trading rules to create a national LNG terminal market; (4) decompose the terminal’s window period service into a combination of three product pricing options—berthing rights, storage capacity, and export capacity—and refine service product categorization; (5) build digital platforms, including websites and mobile apps, to enable dynamic sharing of LNG terminal service information.