Record investments of $50 billion have turned 2019 into a banner year for liquefied natural gas (LNG), with Canada and the United States being the main drivers, the chief of the International Energy Agency (IEA) said.

The industrial sector is Asia's biggest driver of LNG growth, with China expected to overtake Japan as the world's top importer of the fuel in five years, said Fatih Birol, the agency's executive director.

"This year, 2019 already broke the highest amount of (final investment decisions) for the first time ever, $50 billion," he told the annual LNG Producer-Consumer conference in Tokyo.

More than 170 billion cubic metres (bcm) of natural gas liquefaction capacity is due to take a final investment decision this year, a record far surpassing the previous high in 2005 of 70 bcm, according to the IEA.