The United States is now the world’s largest exporter of liquefied natural gas, as Europe’s energy crisis and China’s shortages increase demand for US shipments.
US LNG exports reached 7.7m tonnes in December, according to ship tracking data from ICIS LNG Edge, narrowly outpacing rival producers Qatar and Australia for the first time.
The United States shipped its first cargo of LNG from the lower 48 states in 2016 and became the world’s largest exporter in just six years as a shale gas revolution boosted domestic production and transformed the country into a powerful force in global shale markets. energy.
The United States will be the world’s largest exporter by 2022 according to forecasts by the ICIS and the US Energy Information Agency. Demand is expected to remain high in Europe, where there are fears over Russia’s natural gas supplies as tensions mount over the military build-up on its border with Ukraine.
European gas prices hit new highs in late December as confidence in Russian deliveries waned and controversy lingered over the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, which could transport gas from Russia directly to Germany. The European Union obtains about 40% of natural gas imported from Russia, much of it channeled through Ukraine.
Wholesale prices rose again on Wednesday (5), as gas flow in a pipeline from Russia to Europe reversed for the 16th day in a row, Reuters reported.
US producers have responded by increasing LNG shipments to Europe, where prices are now higher than in East Asia. Prices in both regions far exceed those in the United States, suggesting that US LNG exports will continue to increase in 2022.
“Global spot gas prices have fallen from their all-time highs seen in mid-December, but remain extremely high in historical terms,” said Alex Froley, an analyst at ICIS, adding that he had seen a “significant increase” in buyers signing contracts for gas. long-term gas import from new projects in the United States in recent months.
The European Union has been trying for years to reduce its dependence on Russian natural gas. But a number of EU countries, especially those closest to Russia, still rely almost entirely on Moscow for their that.
China has struggled for months with a power shortage, caused in part by its attempt early last year to reduce the share of electricity generated by coal-fired power plants.
US export capacity is expected to continue to grow for years to come, according to the EIA, which estimates peak capacity at 11.6 billion cubic feet per day in November 2021.
This is expected to increase to 13.9 billion cubic feet per day by the end of 2022 as new export facilities are completed.
But rival producers are also building new infrastructure, such as Qatar which plans to increase its LNG capacity to 126 million metric tons (139 million tons) a year, according to the ICIS. This would allow Qatar to claim the title of largest US exporter at the end of this decade.
Reference: CNN Brasil
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