Latin America’s uncertain LNG future
Old-guard importers are fading, but new markets are opening. The region’s exporters are adapting to the US threat
Latin America doesn't suck in huge quantities of liquefied natural gas like northeast Asia, or feed the world's thirst on the same scale as Australia or Qatar; but it has played an increasingly important role in the global gas trade in recent years. The Southern Cone countries—Brazil, Argentina and Chile—have been the region's stalwart importers. The region put itself on the LNG trade map earlier this decade. Severe droughts in Brazil forced the country to burn far more gas than usual, much of which it brought in from LNG markets. At the same time, Argentina's demand was surging and its production sliding, which saw it turn to LNG markets to plug the gap. In 2014, the Southern Cone countries
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
