February 2024
Global LNG markets in 2023 began to rebalance from the shock caused by the cut in Russian natural gas supply to Europe a year earlier. The global gas benchmark, the ICIS TTF, began the year at €70.95/MWh ($22.00/MMBtu), reached a mid-summer low of €23.23/MWh ($7.30/MMBtu), before closing out 2023 at €32.00/MWh ($10.40/MMBtu).
Underlying gas consumption in the EU and UK market remained subdued and with relatively mild winter quarters at both the start and end of 2023, annual LNG imports dipped fractionally by 1% year on year, to 111.3m tonnes.
With its economy improving, China regained once again the crown for largest LNG importing nation, with 71.7m tonnes delivered, a gain of 14% on 2022.
The historic power-houses of LNG consumption, Japan and Korea, both witnessed further falls in their imports, as nuclear generation continued to eat into gas-fired power’s share in the electricity mix.
As expected, 2023 was a scant year for LNG supply additions. LNG supply increased by almost 13.0m tonnes relative to a year earlier, with Freeport in the US returning following its 2022 fire and a third train starting up at Indonesia’s Tangguh.
Acceda al Informe
