IEA Report: New LNG Supplies Will Need to Find New Markets
The International Energy Agency (IEA) has released a report which predicts a major shift in the global natural gas market over the next five years due to a 45% increase in liquefaction capacity coming online, primarily from the United States and Australia, just as demand growth from the world’s top two LNG buyers, Japan and Korea, weakens. The report projects that China, India and southeast Asian countries will emerge as key LNG buyers. According to the press release, “[f]undamental developments point to oversupply [of LNG] in the market … which should keep spot gas prices across the globe under pressure,” and “unwanted” LNG supplies will try to be sold to European markets “due to the flexibility of its gas system and well-developed spot markets.”