Maintenance Subdues U.S. LNG Volumes

---

Written by Daniel Graeber for Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Already somewhat suppressed relative to early-year highs, U.S. volumes of liquefied natural gas (LNG) are down due to unforeseen circumstances at export terminals on the Gulf Coast.

LNG is cooled considerably, thus lowering the overall volume for deliveries. And because deliveries are waterborne, LNG escapes some of the geopolitical and political issues associated with pipelines.

That helped ensure European energy security in 2022 when Western powers slapped sanctions on gas-rich Russia for invading Ukraine. Up until then, Russia had satisfied about a quarter of the European demand for natural gas, though that void has been filled largely by U.S.-sourced LNG.

A Thursday report from the Energy Information Administration (EIA), the statistical arm of the U.S. Energy Department, found that 27 vessels left U.S. LNG export terminals over the seven-day period ending May 21 carrying a combined 103 billion cubic feet of gas in the liquid form, or around 14 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d).

That compares with the 115 Bcf, or 16.4 Bcf/d, during the last week of April. EIA expects full-year LNG exports to average 15 Bcf/d this year and reach 16 Bcf/d in 2026.

Since returning to the White House for a second, non-consecutive term in office, President Donald Trump has embraced a decidedly pro-fossil fuels agenda, using an emergency declaration in one of his first acts of office to sanction new export projects despite the already-dominant position.

Recent volumes, however, have been curtailed by unforeseen events. The Freeport LNG terminal has been plagued by power outages and other issues that stifled output. On Thursday, however, the company said the third of three LNG storage tanks was returned to service.

"The storage tank had been offline for nearly three years after LNG piping to the tank was damaged in the June 8, 2022 incident at Freeport LNG's natural gas liquefaction and LNG export facility," the company said.

Data from IIR Energy show Freeport operating at about 80% of its peak design capacity of 2.37 Bcf/d during the last week of May.

Elsewhere, IIR found the Corpus Christi LNG export terminal, operated by Cheniere Energy (Houston, Texas), experienced an unscheduled maintenance issue that should take the weekend to resolve. The facility was running at about 67% of its nameplate capacity of 2.4 Bcf/d last week.

The International Gas Union (IGU) has warned that market equilibrium for LNG was "fragile" due to uncertainties on both the supply and demand.

"In addition to these market and project dynamics, considerable uncertainty in geopolitics, trade, and regulatory policy characterizes today's energy landscape," Li Yalan, the IGU president, said.

Trump's volatile trade policies are undermining global growth and suppressing demand. Broader markets tanked on Friday after the president took to social media to threaten the European Union with a 50% tax on imports, and a 25% tariff on Apple Incorporated (NASDAQ:AAPL) (Cupertino, California) products unless its iPhone models are manufactured in the United States.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq was down about 1.5% at the opening bell. West Texas Intermediate, the U.S. benchmark for the price of oil, was down a half-percent to trade at $60.80 per barrel.

Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking over 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 Trillion (USD).