China Sees Biggest Spike in US LNG Imports in 2020
China saw a bigger increase in imports of US-derived LNG than any other country in 2020, the US EIA reported on March 15, with supplies averaging 600mn ft3 (17mn m3)/day.
China lowered its tariffs on imported US LNG from 25% to 10% last year, reversing a hike imposed as part of a trade war launched by US president Donald Trump. Under the 2019 tariff regime, China took in only two US LNG cargoes.
Trump's administration sought to expand US energy dominance, capitalising on the country's vast oil and natural gas reserves. In October, the administration extended the terms of seven long-term LNG export permits through to 2050.
The permit extensions built on a July policy statement that allowed for long-term LNG exports to countries that do not have a free-trade agreement with the US, such as China. All told, total US LNG exports increased 32% from 2019 levels, despite the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on gas markets.
“US LNG was exported to 37 countries, a record number, and Asia overtook Europe to become the main export destination in 2020,” the EIA noted today.
US LNG exports to the Asian economies increased by 67% from 2019 and accounted for nearly half of all US exports of the super-cooled gas.
It may be a slow start for LNG exports for 2021, however. The EIA reported LNG exports in February were about 23% lower than the previous month. A bout of extreme cold weather in the US south, the origin of much of the country’s LNG exports, limited the output available for key export facilities such as Freeport, Cameron and Corpus Christi. LNG exports should remain suppressed through May, the EIA stated in its latest short-term market report.