The United States has every chance of reinforcing its status as a superpower by becoming the largest exporter of liquid natural gas this year, experts assume. Last year, the US led export growth with a year-on-year increase of 24 million tonnes.
Earlier, the United States showed little interest in participating in the race of energy suppliers. However, the country seems to have been actively catching up in recent years, analysts at energy giant Shell note. In 2021, the United States proved to be the world's third-largest LNG exporter, surpassing Russia that ranked fourth. Australia retained its crown as the leader of the ranking. The second position on the list was taken by Qatar. Global LNG trade grew by 6% to 380 million tons last year. The biggest contributors to an increase in demand for LNG were China and South Korea. According to experts, a serious LNG supply-demand gap is forecast to emerge in the mid-2020s. This, in turn, could lead to a shortage at the level of 180-340 million tons in 2040.
Notably, European authorities are making plans for energy independence from Russia. If they succeed, the United States will become the biggest gas supplier to the region. Natural gas plays a major role in the EU energy system as it represents over 23% of its total primary energy consumption.
