Richard Pratt

Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine not only led to the demise of Russian pipeline gas supplies to Europe and caused prices to spike, but it also helped create new arbitrage opportunities for U.S. LNG shippers. In today’s RBN blog, we look at the different approaches the U.S. upstream has adopted in response.

Buoyed by record-level feedgas demand and several planned export terminals reaching important development milestones, 2025 was a banner year for U.S. LNG. Today, we’ll examine some of the sector’s near-term challenges and look at where demand could increase in the long term.

Some market observers see a massive wave of LNG supply ready to flood the market, but the fears of cargo cancellations may be exaggerated, with the “great wave” more like a gradually rising tide. 

The European Union (EU) appears poised to substantially increase its imports of U.S. LNG after reaching a trade deal with the Trump administration that includes a pledge to purchase $750 billion worth of U.S. energy over three years. The trade agreement and the EU’s plans to phase out deliveries of Russian LNG and piped-in natural gas by 2027 may end up being a big positive for U.S. producers. But that doesn’t mean it’s all clear sailing, thanks to competition with Qatar and uncertainty around EU regulations. In today’s RBN blog, we look at how U.S. exporters could still get squeezed on price and volume between today and 2030. 

The European Union (EU) has taken a number of steps in recent years to end its reliance on Russian natural gas, which accounted for nearly half of the bloc’s supplies before the 2022 invasion of Ukraine. But while the changes happening in Europe might provide a boost for global LNG exporters, including projects in operation or under development in the U.S., the EU’s policy shifts have also introduced greater uncertainty around demand. In today’s RBN blog, we look at the increasing difficulty in predicting EU gas demand and what it means for U.S. exporters and the rest of the global LNG market.