U.S. LNG exports plunged in July to the second-lowest level of this year, LSEG ship tracking data showed, as Freeport LNG shut for eight days after suffering damage from Hurricane Beryl.
Texas-based Freeport LNG is the country’s second-largest LNG export facility, and its production woes in the last few years have played a crucial role in swings in U.S. natural gas and global LNG prices.
The U.S. exported 6.69 million metric tons (MT) of LNG in July, compared to 7.11 MT in June and 7.60 MT in May, preliminary data from LSEG showed.
The 6.69 MT is the second-lowest reading in 2024 and is only higher than the 6.19 MT in April, when shipments were also affected by mechanical problems at Freeport LNG.
Freeport LNG halted operations on July 7, ahead of Hurricane Beryl, which hit the Texas coast near Freeport as a Category 1 hurricane. The plant remained down for eight days and resumed operations on a phased basis. The company said the storm damaged the plant’s fin fan air coolers, which dissipate heat during processing.
Cheniere Energy’s LNG facility in Corpus Christi, Texas, also had 30% lower feedgas flows from July 16-22 due to planned maintenance work on its compressor station, which reduced U.S. exports, researcher Rystad Energy said in a market note on Monday.
While LNG exports were lower in July than June, the trend of increased exports to Asia continued and for the first time this year surpassed those to Europe, LSEG data showed.
Asia last month received 2.9 MT, or 43% of total exports, up 1% from June as an ongoing heat wave in the region drove demand, according to Masanori Odaka, a senior analyst at Rystad.
“The region imported around 68 MT of LNG in the second quarter of 2024, which is 14% and 10% higher compared to the same period in 2022 and 2023, respectively,” Odaka wrote.
Sales to Europe fell in July to 2.41 MT, or 36% of total exports, compared to 2.99 MT, or 42% in June, according to LSEG data.
Latin American and Caribbean countries accounted for 0.72 MT, or almost 11% of total LNG exports, slightly down from the 12% in June, LSEG data showed.
There were also exports to two African countries in July, with Egypt buying three cargoes totaling 0.22 MT and Namibia one cargo from Cheniere’s Sabine Pass facility totaling 0.07 MT, according to LSEG data.
There were also five cargoes for a combined volume of 0.37 MT that left U.S. LNG facilities and were out for orders, LSEG data showed.
(Reporting by Curtis Williams in Houston; Editing by Paul Simao)