US LNG's second wave
More US LNG export projects are nearing a green light just as earlier developments debut
The first quarter of 2019 seemed a counterintuitive time for enthusiasm over US liquefaction FIDs. Asian LNG prices were depressed. Trade tensions lingered between the United States and China. More US liquefaction projects were about to come onstream, bringing even more volume to sea. So, with all that as a backdrop, why the enthusiasm? "It all starts with demand," says Ben Nolan, an analyst at investment bank Stifel. "There had been an expectation that it was going to take a while for the market to absorb all the new liquefaction capacity, but over the last few years, the market has more than absorbed it. Three or four years ago, the expectation was that there would be ample LNG supply unti
Also in this section
4 March 2026
The US president has repeatedly promised to lower gasoline prices, but this ambition conflicts with his parallel aim to increase drilling and could be upended by his war against Iran
4 March 2026
With the Strait of Hormuz effectively closed following US-Israel strikes and Iran’s retaliatory escalation, Fujairah has become the region’s critical pressure release valve—and is now under serious threat
3 March 2026
The killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei in US–Israeli strikes marks the most serious escalation in the region in decades and a bigger potential threat to the oil market than the start of the Russia-Ukraine crisis
2 March 2026
A potential blockade of the Strait of Hormuz following the escalating US-Iran conflict risks disrupting Qatari LNG exports that underpin global gas markets, exposing Asia and other markets to sharp price spikes, cargo shortages and renewed reliance on dirtier fuels






