LNG

The value of US-Mexico trade is shifting as Mexico evolves as a conduit for re-exporting American gas to global LNG markets. Though US exports rose 5 percent the trade value fell more than 30 percent to $4.2 billion during the first half of 2025, largely due to lower fuel prices.

The US Trump administration has remained silent in the face of Russia delivering the sixth cargo from the sanctioned Arctic LNG 2 project to China. “Higher volumes or shipments to other destinations could trigger a US response,” Rystad analyst Lu Ming Pang reckons, hinting at the glut of American liquefaction capacity coming to market.

The European Union is paying a premium price for LNG as pipeline gas imports fell 9% in the first half of this year. LNG imports cost the EU around 26.9 billion Euros over the same period, with 13.7 billion Euros of that paid for US cargoes.

Argent LNH is the latest LNG plant developer to have its pre-filing accepted by the US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). The pre-filing involved Argent’s planned 25 million tonnes per annum LNG export terminal at Port Fourchon, Louisiana.

Sempra has asked the US Department of Energy (DOE) to extend the export deadline for its $2.5 billion Energia Costa Azul LNG terminal on Mexico’s Pacific Coast. Construction delays push back commissioning to September 21, 2026.

The US Department of Energy (DoE) has given Golden Pass LNG permission to export 50 billion cubic feet of previously imported LNG from overseas sources for two years starting from October 1, according to the DoE’s website.

ADNOC’s finance arm, XRG has closed its acquisition of an 11.7 percent equity stake in Phase 1 (Trains 1-3) of the Rio Grande LNG project in Brownsville, Texas. This investment is a joint venture between XRG and Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), a part of BlackRock.

Sempra has agreed to divest a 45 percent stake in its infrastructure arm to KKR and CPP Investments for $10 billion. By ceding majority control of its LNG export and midstream assets, Sempra’s future earnings will mostly come from regulated utilities.

Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) will launch two new trading points at Trinity Gas Storage’s Bethel facility in East Texas on October 1. Direct transactions in and out of the gas storage facility will sharpen price transparency in one of the fastest-growing corridors for US LNG exports.

• August-September exports amounted to 19.92mmt • Up by 1.40mmt (8pct) from June-July period • Shipments up by 4.29mmt (27pct) over period year-on-year • Comb. US LNG capacity utilisation at 111pct for the report period.