Houston—Gas deliveries to US liquefaction terminals topped 11 Bcf/d for the first time in a week Jan. 25 as the impact of fog eased temporarily, S&P Global Platts Analytics data showed.
Pilot service resumed for LNG tankers heading inbound through the channel that feeds Cheniere Energy's Sabine Pass facility in southwest Louisiana.The rebound in activity could be short-lived, as fog was forecast to return to the area, possibly limiting activity in the coming days, according to a notice to shippers. Fog also has been impacting shippers elsewhere along the Gulf Coast, from Louisiana down to Houston and Corpus Christi in Texas.
A half-dozen unladen LNG tankers were in the Gulf of Mexico on Jan. 25 near the channels that serve Sabine Pass, Cheniere's Corpus Christi Liquefaction facility, Freeport LNG and Sempra Energy's Cameron LNG. Other tankers were loading or heading into or departing terminals, cFlow, Platts trade flow software, showed.
Platts JKM for March was assessed steady at $8.875/MMBtu on Jan. 25. Shipments to Asia, the world's biggest LNG import market, have been strong in recent months amid robust JKM spot prices.
Total US feedgas demand rose to 11.07 Bcf/d on Jan. 25 from 10.62 Bcf/d the day before and 9.32 Bcf/d on Jan. 22. All six major export terminals, except Kinder Morgan's Elba Liquefaction facility in Georgia, appeared to be operating at or near capacity Jan. 25.
The latest surge in feedgas demand was still off about 500 MMcf/d from the record 11.58 Bcf/d on Dec. 13, Platts Analytics data showed.
Robust Asian spot prices have raised the hopes of US developers of new liquefaction capacity that commercial activity will pick up, allowing them to secure sufficient long-term contracts to sanction their proposed terminals.
More than a dozen projects are actively vying for contracts with the same groups of prospective buyers in Asia, Europe and the Middle East.
Bullish on the opportunities that exist, Venture Global LNG is seeking to enter the pre-filing process at the US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission for what would be a fourth export project, if the others it is building or developing all move forward.
In the past, Venture Global has wooed customers with ultra-low fees for its supplies.
