EU touts US LNG imports

In talks to urge Trump to drop hefty new tariffs last month, the EU’s chief executive Jean-Claude Juncker agreed to work to increase imports of LNG to the bloc.

The EU has long worked to diversify away from relying on Russia for almost 40% of its gas needs by developing LNG infrastructure to access other suppliers like the US.

Whether US LNG imports can win market share away from Russia, however, will depend on market forces, EU officials are quick to stress.

“The growing exports of U.S. liquefied natural gas, if priced competitively, could play an increasing and strategic role in EU gas supply,” Juncker said in a statement.

“But the US needs to play its role in doing away with red tape restrictions,” he said, referring to US rules that require regulatory approval for LNG exports to Europe.

Since the arrival of the first US LNG supplies in 2016, cumulative imports to the bloc have reached 2.8 billion m³, the EU said on 9 August.

In 2017, Europe accounted for more than 10% of total US LNG exports, up from 5% in 2016, it said. Spain, France and Italy are the largest of nine EU member states purchasing US gas.

The EU’s decision to publish historic trade data is unusual – part of the bloc’s drive to sway Trump by showing tariff-free trade flows can benefit the US.

Trump said in a Tweet last month that the EU would “be buying vast amounts of LNG”, while Juncker said the EU would build more terminals to handle American LNG.

However, three-quarters of Europe’s existing import facilities lie empty while demand for US LNG on the continent remains limited.

The most lucrative markets for US LNG are in South and Central America, India and the Far East, with Europe near the bottom of the pile given its relatively low prices and ample supplies of gas via pipelines from Russia and Norway.

Read the article online at: https://www.lngindustry.com/liquid-natural-gas/10082018/eu-touts-us-lng-imports/