The United States will not give gas to Europe: it turned out to be more profitable to sell in the country

The drop in LNG production at the American gas export terminal is due to the fact that suppliers preferred to sell volumes in the United States themselves — when prices rose to the highest in the last three years due to the Arctic storm.

"Rising natural gas prices in the United States have prompted several investors under the tolling contract to cancel LNG exports from the United States, opting instead for sales in the more expensive domestic market," S&P Platts writes.

Over the weekend, the United States was hit by an Arctic storm and gas production in the country decreased by 10%. At the same time, prices on the Henry Hub exchange doubled to $ 264 per thousand cubic meters. In this situation, it has become profitable for suppliers who independently buy gas and liquefy it for a separate fixed fee to abandon LNG exports and sell fuel within the United States itself.

An analyst from Northwestern Europe expects cancellations to amount to 15 shipments - up to 1.5 billion cubic meters, writes S&P Platts.

As EADaily reported, American LNG plants, which have become the main suppliers of liquefied natural gas to Europe since last year, are trying to restore production after the Arctic storm and frost. If until January 25, gas supplies to LNG terminals exceeded 500 million cubic meters per day, then in the next two days they fell to almost 300 million cubic meters. However, as RonhEnergy data shows, the situation is improving. So, on January 27, gas supplies to LNG plants increased to 461 million cubic meters, and on January 28 — to 484 million cubic meters per day.

Also in the USA it took at least four batches from the factory to Trinidad and Tobago. BP and Shell also found it more profitable to supply LNG to the USA.

So far, this does not affect LNG supplies to Europe, but prices in the region have already exceeded $ 500 per thousand cubic meters, and Russian gas supplies to the countries The EU is at its maximum. For example, Yamal LNG sent all the gas produced to the European Union in January and set a new record.