Once again US LNG exports have reached new highs. At this point all Wave 1 facilities have seen some amount of natural gas deliveries to their terminals, pushing total US LNG gas demand to just over 6 Bcf/d. That’s up 2.5 Bcf/d year-over-year, no doubt a strong showing, yet Henry Hub prices (spot and futures) languished. Cash prices have struggled, not breaking above $2.40 since the beginning of June, while the remaining strip this summer is sitting at only $2.28/MMBTU. However, continual LNG export delays  have no doubt contributed to the downward strangle hold on prices.

Firstly, LNG feedstock demand has surged. The graphic below shows deliveries to all US Wave 1 facilities, surging beyond 6 Bcf/d in the recent days.

However, let’s take a step back from the record breaking and look at what could have been. Looking at announced in-service dates from just last year, show we should have had an additional 3 Bcf/d of capacity online this summer, but facilities such as Cameron, Freeport, and Elba Island have delayed multiple times. If not for these delays I would be writing about LNG deliveries nearing 8 Bcf/d, however that conversation will have to wait till 2020 now.

Read more: https://btuanalytics.com/lng-export-delays/