Embracing LNG

US imports of liquefied natural gas (LNG) jumped by 29 percent last year and added three percent to the

's supply of a critical energy. Natural gas consumers benefited as this additional supply helped to keep prices stable for home heating and other uses, according to the

.

As shown in Fossil Energy’s recently released Natural Gas Imports and Exports Fourth Quarter Report 2004, the increase to 652 billion cubic feet (Bcf), from 507 Bcf in the previous year, caps a rise of 300 percent in LNG imports since 1999. LNG imports are projected to account for 20 percent of supply by 2020. Seventy percent of US LNG imports currently come from Trinidad and Tobago.

In 2002, LNG imports to the United States totalled 229 Bcf, or six percent of imported gas. In 2003, imports totalled 506 Bcf, or 13 percent of all imported gas, more than doubling 2002’s total. Data for 2004 shows that LNG accounted for 15 percent of total imports, nearly a tripling in volume in just two years. The LNG numbers will increase yet again in 2005, and in the years beyond.