US liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports rose in the week ending April 24 compared to the week before, according to the Energy Information Administration.
The agency said in its weekly report that 22 LNG carriers departed the US plants between April 18 and April 24, one shipment more compared to the week before.
Citing shipping data provided by Bloomberg Finance, the EIA said the total capacity of these LNG vessels is 79 Bcf.
Natural gas deliveries to US terminals up
Average natural gas deliveries to US LNG export terminals increased by 4.9 percent (0.5 Bcf/d) week over week, averaging 11.5 Bcf/d, according to data from S&P Global Commodity Insights.
Natural gas deliveries to terminals in South Louisiana increased by 4.1 percent (0.3 Bcf/d) to 8.2 Bcf/d, while natural gas deliveries to terminals in South Texas increased 14.3 percent (0.2 Bcf/d) to 2 Bcf/d.
The agency said that natural gas deliveries to terminals outside the Gulf Coast were essentially unchanged at 1.3 Bcf/d.
Cheniere’s Sabine Pass plant shipped nine cargoes and the company’s Corpus Christi facility sent four shipments during the week under review.
Sempra Infrastructure’s Cameron LNG terminal shipped three cargoes while Venture Global LNG’s Calcasieu Pass facility and the Elba Island terminal each shipped two cargoes during the period.
Also, the Cove Point and the Freeport LNG facility each sent one LNG cargo during the week.
Freeport LNG, south of Houston, Texas said last month it will operate with only the third train until “sometime in May” when it expects to bring back online the first and the second train.
According to reports, the third LNG train tripped offline on April 9 and this Tuesday as well.
LNG Prime previously invited Freeport LNG to provide an update on the status of the third train, but the LNG terminal operator declined to comment.
The EIA is expecting a 2 percent increase in US LNG exports this year compared to record 2023, while LNG exports are expected to rise 18 percent in 2025 due to new LNG terminals coming online.
Henry Hub climbs
This report week, the Henry Hub spot price rose 9 cents from $1.50 per million British thermal units (MMBtu) last Wednesday to $1.59/MMBtu this Wednesday.
The agency said the price of the May 2024 NYMEX contract decreased 5.9 cents, from $1.712/MMBtu last Wednesday to $1.653/MMBtu this Wednesday.
According to the EIA, the price of the 12-month strip averaging May 2024 through April 2025 futures contracts climbed 3.3 cents to $2.802/MMBtu.
TTF averaged $9.38/MMBtu
The agency said that international natural gas futures were mixed this report week.
Bloomberg Finance reported that weekly average front-month futures prices for LNG cargoes in East Asia increased 32 cents to a weekly average of $10.51/MMBtu.
Natural gas futures for delivery at the Dutch TTF decreased 35 cents to a weekly average of $9.38/MMBtu.
In the same week last year (week ending April 26, 2023), the prices were $11.90/MMBtu in East Asia and $12.84/MMBtu at TTF, the agency said.
