Jamison Cocklin

The world is likely to be awash in LNG later this decade, but the surplus isn’t expected to last forever and divisions over how long the market would take to balance are coming into sharp relief.

NO. 1: Saudi Arabian Oil Co., aka Aramco, has signed a tentative agreement to purchase 1.2 million metric tons/year (mmty) of LNG from NextDecade Corp.’s Rio Grande export project in South Texas.

Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. (Adnoc) has reached a final investment decision (FID) and will move ahead with its Ruwais LNG export project that’s expected to come online in 2028 and add to a wave of global supply entering service later this decade.

Chevron Corp. said Tuesday it has shut down LNG production at its Wheatstone export terminal in Western Australia for repairs at a time when other outages are keeping the global natural gas market tight.

Hot weather and maintenance work cutting into supplies pushed global natural gas prices higher on Monday.

NO. 1: Golden Pass LNG’s feed gas pipeline is expected to be in service during the first half of 2025, but the timeline could be impacted by the Zachry Group’s bankruptcy filing last month, according to a field inspection report by FERC. 

Taiwan’s CPC Corp. said Wednesday it would purchase more natural gas from Qatar and take a share in the massive North Field LNG expansion project being developed there.

European natural gas prices hit their highest level in six months on Monday after an unplanned outage in Norway significantly cut into supplies and jolted the market. 

NO. 1: Argentina’s Enarsa PDV SA has purchased eight spot LNG cargoes as it grapples with a cold snap ahead of winter in the Southern Hemisphere, which begins next month.

National Grid plc announced it would sell the Grain LNG terminal in the UK, Europe’s largest import facility, to help fund its capital investment plans.