US becomes top LNG exporter after overtaking Australia and Qatar

The 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 for the first time since at least 2016, 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.

This year, two new LNG projects in the US are due to start production: Venture Global LNG Inc.’s Plaquemines facility in Louisiana and Golden Pass in Texas, a joint venture between Exxon Mobil Corp. and QatarEnergy. At full capacity, the two projects would add another 38 million tons a year from the US.