LNG market on the rise: Asia, Middle East and America are the main suppliers [REPORT]

By Marek Grzybowski

Global trade in liquefied natural gas (LNG) grew by 2.4% in 2024. Its supply increased to 411.24 million tonnes (MT), connecting 22 supplier markets with 48 buyer markets. Asia and the Pacific region is the largest LNG supply region with 138.91 MT in 2024. Its exports increased by adding 4.1 MT compared to 2023, informs the latest “2025 World LNG Report”, prepared by the International Gas Union.

– European LNG imports fell sharply, decreasing by 21.22 MT year-on-year to 100.07 MT, which was due to high levels of gas storage in early 2024, slow demand and stable gas supplies via pipelines, explains Menelaos (Mel) Ydreos, Secretary General, International Gas Union (IGU).

Demand for LNG was clearly visible in Asia, with China and India recording significant import growth. Ydreos believes that “the strong year-on-year growth in spot LNG imports in these markets was driven by heat waves, infrastructure expansion [import – MG] and increased industry reliance on gas supply”. Although EU countries have reduced LNG imports, LNG shipments by ship have increased significantly in 2024. “The global LNG growth trajectory continued in 2024, as reflected in a further 2.4% increase in LNG seaborne trade, an increase of 6.5 MTPA in liquefaction capacity and the debut of two new export markets – Mexico and Congo,” states the “2025 World LNG Report” published in May.

 

Gas in Asia as a premium fuel
Undoubtedly, the increased demand in several markets was significantly influenced by the fact that after the market turbulence at the beginning of this decade, LNG prices continued to fall in 2024. Demand did not exceed supply enough to drastically increase prices. Although the movement of LNG tankers between suppliers and recipients grew, mainly driven by demand from consumers and industrial recipients in Asia. In this region, gas is still a premium fuel and is a clear component of the energy mix. It is also treated as an important component of energy security.

The report notes that “the balance in the global LNG market is fragile and sensitive to uncertainty on both the supply and demand sides”. Disruptions can be caused by both geopolitical disruptions and turbulence in supply chains caused by terrorist attacks on major communication routes. The restrictive customs policy of President Donald Trump and subsequent sanctions imposed on Russia are certainly not conducive to stabilization.

“In addition to these market and project dynamics, today’s energy landscape is characterized by significant uncertainty in geopolitics, trade and regulatory policy,” the report notes.

 

Major Suppliers
Asia and the Pacific remain the largest region generating LNG supply. Ships from this region loaded 138.91 MT in 2024, up 4.1 MT compared to 2023. The Middle East continued to be the second largest region supplying LNG to the global market. 94.25 MT of gas was loaded at Arab terminals, down 0.44 MT compared to 2023.

North America was the third largest export region. Supply from US terminals increased by 4.11 MT to 88.64 MT. Supply from North America was mainly generated by increased production from US facilities and the start-up of the Plaquemines plant. Mexico and Congo joined the group of LNG exporters in 2024 with new production and exports via FLNG.
On the import side, Asia generated the largest increase in demand for gas transported by tankers in 2024. Deliveries to import terminals increased by 12.48 MT year-on-year to 117.97 MT, outpacing demand from Pacific countries. Here, LNG imports increased by 9.77 MT to 165.09 MT. The increase in imports is justified, among other things, by exceptionally lower LNG prices at the beginning of 2024. This encouraged larger spot purchases by price-sensitive markets.

 

China the largest importer
China maintains its position as the market leader and has been the largest importer for several years. China’s imports increased in 2024 by 7.45 MT to 78.64 MT. India imported 26.15 MT in 2024, which means an increase of 4.19 MT (19.1%) compared to 2023, when 21.96 MT of liquefied gas was imported. Japan and South Korea imported 67.72 MT and 47.01 MT by sea, respectively. Their increases were moderate.

On the other hand, European imports fell sharply. European countries reduced their demand for LNG by as much as 21.22 MT year-on-year to 100.07 MT. This is justified by the high level of inventories at the beginning of the year and the high supply of gas supplies via pipelines. The UK saw the biggest drop in LNG imports, down 6.48 MT to 8.03 MT in 2024. France’s imports fell by 3.75 MT, Spain imported 3.49 MT less, and the Netherlands received 2.98 MT less LNG at gas terminals than in 2023. LNG prices finally stabilized in 2024. The Platts Japan/Korea Marker (JKM) – a key Asian LNG price indicator – averaged $11.91 per mmBtu. This was a significant 13.5% drop compared to 2023. The indicator stabilized below long-term contract prices linked to crude oil for most of the year, the IGU report noted.

Low prices, higher imports
The IGU said that it was significant that “the 30-day average volatility of the JKM index fell to 45%, triggering record spot trading activity and improving confidence in the futures market. Price levels were stabilised in the first half of the year due to mild winter weather and high inventories”.
However, the fourth quarter saw a shift, driven by geopolitical tensions and rising supply expectations. Southeast Asian markets increased spot buying, with around two-thirds of spot trades linked to the JKM index.
Meanwhile, EU LNG imports fell to their lowest level since 2021, as strong renewable energy production, strong pipeline gas supply and lower price spreads limited spot buying. “However, flexibility improved, with spot and short-term imports increasing to 50% of total volumes,” the IGU report emphasised.
The JKM–NWE (North Western Europe) price spread narrowed to $1.15/mmBtu, reflecting increased competition between suppliers.

Production Capacity
Global LNG production and liquefaction capacity increased by 6.5 million tons per annum (MTPA) in 2024 to 494.4 MTPA last December. This increase was driven by the start-up of the Plaquemines LNG 1-8 (T1-T8) unit in the United States (4.5 MTPA), the Altamira FLNG in Mexico (1.4 MTPA) and the Marine XII FLNG project in Congo (0.6 MTPA). The United States maintained its leading position in terms of operational liquefaction capacity, reaching 97.5 MTPA.

It was followed by Australia and Qatar with 87.6 MTPA and 77.1 MTPA, respectively. These three markets alone account for more than half of global LNG production capacity. Despite the increase in capacity, the global average plant utilisation rate fell slightly from 88.7% in 2023 to 86.7% in 2024. This was due to maintenance, power outages and a series of technical outages at various liquefaction facilities.

Final investment decision (FID) activity fell significantly in 2024. Only 14.8 MTPA of new liquefaction capacity reached FID, the lowest annual number of approvals since 2020. This is “significantly below the 58.8 MTPA announced in 2023,” the 2025 World LNG Report states.

Key projects that have received FIDs include Ruwais LNG in the UAE (9.6 MTPA), Cedar FLNG in Canada (3.0 MTPA), Genting FLNG in Indonesia (1.2 MTPA) and Marsa LNG in Oman (1.0 MTPA). Ruwais LNG is set to become one of the first LNG export terminals in the Middle East to be powered solely by electricity from the domestic grid. Similarly, Marsa LNG intends to source 100% of its electricity from a solar farm and will also offer zero-emission LNG bunkering services to help reduce emissions in the shipping sector.

Gas-based decarbonisation
Decarbonisation continues to play an increasingly important role in the development of gas-liquefaction projects. Stakeholders across the sector are promoting electrification, CCS integration and alternative fuels such as e-methane. Cedar LNG in Canada, majority owned by the Haisla Nation, will use hydropower for its industrial operations. Ichthys LNG in Australia is implementing a CCS injection project in partnership with Chubu Electric. Tokyo Gas and Mitsui completed delivery of bio-LNG from Cameron LNG to Japan in March 2024, illustrating the direction of LNG producers’ environmentally friendly activities.
FLNG production capacity has also been further expanded, with Marine XII FLNG in Congo and Altamira Fast LNG in Mexico coming online in 2025. In early 2025, total FLNG operational capacity was 14.35 MTPA. FLNG has become a flexible, lower-emission alternative to onshore liquefaction, particularly attractive in environmentally sensitive areas or where infrastructure is limited, the report emphasizes.
New FLNG projects are underway in 15 markets, and standardized second-generation FLNG units are gaining popularity among exporters due to shorter lead times, lower capital commitment, improved CAPEX and faster ROI.

Li Yalan, President of the International Gas Union, states that “Despite the turbulent environment, we are confident that the LNG sector will continue to develop and evolve to meet customer needs and respond to the many changes in global energy dynamics. We also believe that growing demand for natural gas in emerging markets, increasing diversification of market participants, infrastructure expansion and development of innovative technologies will continue to drive the LNG market.”
– I am particularly proud to see that the LNG industry continues to demonstrate remarkable agility in global markets and invest in the infrastructure necessary to ensure energy security and access to various regions of the world, including Europe, which continues to grapple with the repercussions of a significant reduction in imports from Russia – emphasizes the President of the International Gas Union in the introduction to the report.
She said: “As the world moves towards a lower-emissions future, nations are looking for ways to meet their climate commitments while keeping energy affordable, accessible and safe. LNG is an invaluable tool that continues to gain traction as a low-cost, reliable option for emerging energy markets looking to replace higher-emission fuels.” LNG will also remain a key energy source for a long time to come, helping economies become more resilient to disruptions in electricity supply.

More: “2025 World LNG Report”, prepared by the International Gas Union.