MILAN/SINGAPORE, April 10 (Reuters) - Australia's latest liquefied natural gas (LNG) export project coming on stream this summer at Gladstone has begun sounding out potential buyers as it seeks to place its first six months of production into already over supplied spot markets, trading sources said. Australia Pacific LNG, a joint-venture between local player Origin Energy Ltd, U.S. major ConocoPhillips and China's Sinopec, expects to begin loading tankers late in the third-quarter for sale to market participants before long-term delivery obligations kick in from April 2016, the sources said. Within that commissioning phase of the project, exports are estimated at between two to three cargoes per month, with seven to 10 cargoes planned by the end of the year, they said. AP LNG did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment. At plateau, the project could export eight shipments per month, feeding into a market already overwhelmed by supply from other new facilities, such as BG Group's Queensland Curtis in Australia and Exxon Mobil's in Papua New Guinea. Asian spot cargoes are currently trading at just above $7 per million British thermal units (mmBtu) for May delivery, a drop of more than 50 percent from last year. The start-up of Chevron's giant 15.6 million tonne per annum (mtpa) Gorgon LNG plant in Australia in mid-2015, followed by Santos' 7.8 mtpa Gladstone facility will add to oversupply, pressuring spot prices to below $6 mmBtu, some analysts say. Towards year's end, the United States is expected to join the exporters club with first cargoes from Cheniere's Gulf Coast plant at Sabine Pass. Attempting to get ahead of the surge, Australia Pacific LNG is gauging interest from Indian, Chinese and some South American buyers, such as Chile, traders said. Others said that large diversified trading companies such as Royal Dutch Shell, BG Group and BP Plc may be best equipped to handle the volumes given the logistical uncertainties associated with new projects. The plant, which will liquefy gas from underground coal-beds in the Surat and Bowen Basins of south-west and central Queensland, will produce a leaner form of LNG with lower heating value, making it difficult for some potential importers to handle large volumes. (Reporting by Oleg Vukmanovic; editing by Susan Thomas)
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