US LNG Weekly: Disruptions seen at US facilities due to cold wave

New York — LNG export activities in the US Gulf region were facing severe disruptions due to the unexpected cold wave and freezing temperatures.

With temperatures having averaged around minus 1 C (30 F) since Feb. 12, and with forecast of these temperatures to remain at 0 C (32 F), through to Feb. 17, production levels have dropped below normal.

Delays were reported from US facilities at Freeport, Sabine Pass and Corpus Christi due to the cold weather.

No vessel movements could be seen at Sabine Pass and Corpus Christi, as travels through Lake Charles and the Houston shipping channels are suspended due to the freezing temperatures. According to cFlow, S&P Global Platts trade-flow software, the last loading was seen in the region on Feb. 14.

Kinder Morgan declared force majeure at a compressor station for gas to Sabine Pass, however, market participants don't see this to be a major issue and expect it be resolved in a timely manner.

At Freeport, BP was heard to have canceled a cargo, but this could not be confirmed at the time of writing.

Feedgas nominations in the US Gulf region have dropped by over 2.9 Bcf/d since Feb. 9, from 10.5 Bcf/d to 7.6 Bcf/d -- the lowest level since October 2020, according Platts Analytics data.

The biggest drop was seen at Freeport, with nominations down from 1.958 Bcf/d on Feb. 9 to 0.286 Bcf/d on Feb. 16.

Sabine Pass, which was recently was facing fog disruptions, saw a drop of 0.3 Bcf/d from 3.4 Bcf/d to 3.1 Bcf/d over the same period.

The Platts Gulf Coast Marker was assessed at $4.613/MMBtu on Feb. 16.