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* Spark Commodities to launch LNG trading platform by Q4,2019
* Team of about 10 has been hired, including ex Koch trader
* Several platforms vie to capture booming LNG market
By Jessica Jaganathan
SINGAPORE, April 9 (Reuters) - French data firm Kpler andenergy exchange Powernext plan to launch a trading platform forliquefied natural gas (LNG) in Singapore this year, companyexecutives told Reuters, joining a run of firms capitalising ongrowing spot volumes.
The move comes amid a surge in supply of the super-chilledfuel, along with healthy demand, which has triggered a boost intrading as many countries and companies switch from burning coalto cleaner natural gas.
The two companies set up Spark Commodities in Singapore inMarch and have hired Tim Mendelssohn, previously with KochSupply and Trading and oil major BP, as its managingdirector.
Spark, which is majority-owned by Kpler, aims to launch atrading platform for physical LNG buyers and sellers by thefourth quarter of this year, Mendelssohn told Reuters in aninterview this week.
Spark will not be alone. Rising spot trading volumes haveattracted several companies to launch LNG pricing and tradingplatforms, including GLX and dominant oil price agency S&PGlobal Platts.
GLX is based in Australia, but Spark will join Platts inSingapore - already Asia's main oil trading hub - which is vyingto establish itself as the main exchange point for the boomingLNG market.
Unlike oil, which has several liquid financial and physicaltrading platforms and exchanges, LNG markets are still evolving,and Kpler chief executive and co-founder Francois Cazor saidclients had been asking how to trade LNG faster and moreefficiently.
"To do this, we wanted to create a separate entity to Kpler;one which allowed us to focus on providing greater transparencyto commodity flows whilst giving the new entity, Spark, thenecessary freedom to focus on price and improving thetransaction process," said Cazor.
Kpler is a French data intelligence firm mostly known forits ship tracking and cargo information services, which tradersand analysts use to monitor global supply and demand changes forproducts like oil or LNG.
Powernext is part of the European Energy Exchange (EEX),Europe's biggest wholesale electricity bourse, which also offersnatural gas products.
EEX, which launched EEX Asia in Singapore last year, is asubsidiary of Germany's Deutsche Boerse AG exchangegroup.
(Reporting by Jessica Jaganathan; Editing by Henning Gloysteinand Richard Pullin)
