Golden Pass Return Fails to Lift U.S. LNG Feedgas Flows
U.S. LNG feedgas flows are on track to hit a 16-week low as maintenance at major export plants offsets the expected return of Golden Pass LNG in Texas.
(Reuters) — The amount of natural gas flowing to the nine big U.S. liquefied natural gas export plants looked set to hit a 16-week low on May 19 even though QatarEnergy/Exxon Mobil's Golden Pass plant in Texas was on track to return, according to data from financial company LSEG.
The U.S. became the world's biggest LNG exporter in 2023, surpassing Australia and Qatar, as surging global prices fed demand for more low-cost U.S. gas.
That U.S. gas has become increasingly important in meeting growing demand for energy around the world in recent years as supply disruptions linked to Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine and the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran caused global gas prices to spike.
Average gas flows to U.S. LNG export plants fell from a monthly record high of 18.8 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) in April to 16.9 Bcf/d so far in May, according to LSEG data, due to spring maintenance reductions at several plants, including the Golden Pass and Freeport LNG's export plant in Texas.
On a daily basis, LNG feedgas was on track to fall from 16.3 Bcf/d on Monday to 15.1 Bcf/d on May 19, the lowest since January 27.
One billion cubic feet is enough gas to supply around five million U.S. homes for a day.
That decline came despite an expected increase in flows to around 0.3 Bcf/d at Golden Pass after the plant took in almost no gas for six days in a row. Golden Pass exported its first LNG cargo in late April.
There is one liquefaction train capable of turning about 0.8 Bcf/d of gas into LNG operating at Golden Pass and two other 0.8-Bcf/d trains under construction and expected to enter service later in 2026 and in 2027.
May 19's daily U.S. feedgas decline also came despite near-record flows of 2.56 Bcf/d at Cheniere Energy's Corpus Christi plant in Texas. If correct, that would be the biggest daily gas flow to Corpus, which has new trains in testing and under construction, since pulling in 2.64 Bcf/d in late January.
Corpus will have the capacity to turn about 3.9 Bcf/d of gas into LNG once all of its new Stage 3 liquefaction trains enter service around the end of the year.
As for daily losses, feedgas to Cheniere's 4.5-Bcf/d Sabine Pass plant in Louisiana and Freeport LNG's 2.4-Bcf/d plant in Texas were both on track to drop to 16-week lows of 3.4 Bcf/d at Sabine and 0.6 Bcf/d at Freeport on May 19, down from 4.4 Bcf/d at Sabine and 1.2 Bcf/d at Freeport on May 15.
Officials at Freeport had no comment, while officials at Cheniere and Golden Pass were not immediately available for comment.