(Reuters) – U.S. liquefied natural gas exports fell to 10.2 million metric tons (MT) in May, the lowest level this year excluding February’s shorter month, as seasonal maintenance curbed output, preliminary data from financial firm LSEG showed.
The decline was driven by planned outages across several export plants, as operators carried out spring maintenance after delaying work earlier in the year to capture strong demand.
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Cheniere Energy and some U.S. exporters had postponed maintenance in March to maximize shipments to Asia, amid supply disruptions linked to reduced Qatari supplies which resulted in a loss of almost 20% of global volumes.
At Freeport LNG in Texas, one of three liquefaction trains went offline for scheduled maintenance beginning in mid-May, while Cameron LNG in Louisiana reduced its demand for feedgas, pointing to annual maintenance on Train 2 and ongoing work on the pipeline that feeds gas to the plant.
Golden Pass LNG in Texas saw near-zero gas intake for several days in early May as it continued its commissioning of the plant, and Cheniere’s Sabine Pass facility in Louisiana reported a sharp drop in feedgas flows in mid-May due to maintenance.
Despite lower overall exports, shipments to Asia rose to a one-year high. The U.S. exported 3.68 MT to Asia in May, or just under 36% of total shipments, up from 2.71 MT in April, according to LSEG ship-tracking data.
The increase reflected a pricing arbitrage, with the Asian JKM benchmark trading at a premium to Europe’s TTF.
Asian spot LNG prices eased slightly in May but remained elevated, with the JKM averaging $17.75 per million British thermal units (mmBtu), down from $17.92 in April. The benchmark held at roughly a 10% premium to Europe’s TTF, which averaged $16.11 per mmBtu, up from $15.34 in April.
Europe remained the largest destination for U.S. LNG exports, taking 5.13 MT, or just over 50% of shipments. That, however, was down from 6.14 MT, or nearly 56%, in April, LSEG ship-tracking data show.
Exports to Latin America rose to 600,000 tons, or around 6% of total volumes, the highest level since the start of the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran, according to LSEG ship-tracking data.
There had been reduced exports to Latin America from the U.S. since the start of the war, according to LSEG data.
Egypt reduced its purchases, importing about 300,000 tons, roughly half its typical monthly intake of 600,000 tons, LSEG data showed.
Elsewhere, two cargoes were delivered to African countries, while just over 3% of U.S. LNG cargoes remained on the water at month-end, indicating availability for spot buyers.
Despite lower U.S. LNG output, preliminary LSEG data show global LNG exports remained relatively stable at 33.8 MT in May, slightly lower than 33.99 MT in April and down from 35.66 MT in March.
Reporting by Curtis Williams in Houston; Editing by Chris Reese
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