US LNG exports dropped in the week ending January 19, while the Henry Hub spot price logged an increase when compared to the week before, according to the Energy Information Administration.
The agency said in its weekly natural gas report that the US has exported 20 LNG shipments between January 13 and January 19, down by five cargoes when compared to the week before.
Natural gas deliveries to LNG export facilities rose to 12.8 Bcf/d, or 0.55 Bcf/d higher than last week.
Five US terminals exported the 20 cargoes during the week under review. The total capacity of LNG vessels carrying these cargoes is 76 Bcf.
Cheniere’s Sabine Pass plant dispatched eight cargoes, while its Corpus Christi plant sent four shipments. The Cameron terminal sent four cargoes, Freeport three, and Cove Point one.
Henry Hub spot price up
This report week, the Henry Hub spot price rose from 4.59/MMBtu last Wednesday to $4.74/MMBtu this Wednesday, the agency said.
Flows of natural gas out of South Louisiana were up 3.9 percent ot about 130 million cubic feet per day this week, following a 37 percent increase last week in response to rising natural gas consumption in the eastern US that resulted from a cooling trend across much of the Northeast and Midwest.
Feed gas consumption at Venture Global’s Calcasieu LNG export terminal is rising gradually as a result of last week’s FERC approval to begin introducing feed gas to the first train.
The agency said pipeline deliveries on the Trans Cameron pipeline, which serves the terminal, increased by about 10 MMcf/d this week compared with flows before the FERC approval.
The plant is likely to start up slowly because no commissioning cargo has been scheduled to cool down the facility, it said.
LNG prices drop
According to the agency, international natural gas prices dropped this report week as well.
Bloomberg Finance reported that swap prices for LNG cargoes in East Asia for the balance of January fell $3.41 to a weekly average of $30.46/MMBtu.
At the Dutch TTF, the day-ahead prices fell $1.65 to a weekly average of $26.42/MMBtu.
In the same week last year (week ending January 20, 2021), prices in East Asia and at TTF were $14.32/MMBtu and $7.15/MMBtu, respectively, EIA said.