US Becomes Top LNG Exporter After Overtaking Australia and Qatar
- Qatar cedes ranking as top supplier to slip behind Australia
- Two new US projects are set to start producing in 2024
Tug boats prepare to pull out an LNG Tanker vessel in Cameron, Louisiana.
Photographer: Mark Felix/BloombergThe US has become the world’s biggest exporter of liquefied natural gas for the first time, with 2023 shipments overtaking leading suppliers Australia and Qatar.
The US exported 91.2 million metric tons of LNG in 2023, a record for the country, according to data through Dec. 31 compiled by Bloomberg. The expanded output was due to last year’s restart of Freeport LNG in Texas, which had been shuttered for months following a June 2022 fire and explosion. Qatar, the top LNG supplier in 2022, saw its volumes shrink, with a 1.9% decline dropping the nation into third spot for shipments of the super-chilled fuel. Australia ranked second, with exports that were little changed from 2022.