Global LNG exports fall to six-month low on Iran conflict

[SINGAPORE] Global liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports declined to a six-month low, erasing recent supply additions from the US and elsewhere as the conflict in the Middle East throttles flows.

The 10-day moving average for LNG shipments has fallen about 20 per cent from the start of the month to 1.1 million tonnes, the lowest since September, according to Bloomberg analysis of ship-tracking data on Kpler.

The drop is primarily from Qatar, and to a lesser extent the United Arab Emirates, the data shows. Both nations need to ship fuel through the Strait of Hormuz to reach customers in Asia and Europe.

The war in Iran is spiralling into a regional conflict that is threatening to upend the LNG market. Qatar was forced to shut its LNG export plant in Ras Laffan, the biggest in the world, earlier in the month after attacks from Iran. A recent strike last week damaged the facility, and it will take years for two of the plant’s 14 production trains to be repaired.

LNG output around the world had been steadily rising over the past year, thanks primarily to new projects in the US and Canada. This is being offset by the loss of Qatari LNG and the effective closure of Hormuz, a key waterway for about a fifth of LNG supply. BLOOMBERG