The U.S. has\u00a0emerged\u00a0as the world\u2019s hydrocarbon superpower, exemplified by its meteoric rise in the liquefied natural gas (LNG) market.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
That\u2019s what Wood Mackenzie (WoodMac) said in a statement sent to Rigzone recently, which highlighted several charts that \u201cspotlight the most significant trends reshaping the [energy and resources] sector globally\u201d and were included in the company\u2019s latest Horizons report.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u00a0don\u2019t\u00a0need to look too far back\u00a0to find a\u00a0U.S. which was\u00a0building\u00a0LNG import infrastructure and now in under 10\u00a0years it has become the world\u2019s largest LNG exporter,\u201d WoodMac said in the statement.<\/p>\n
The company noted in the statement that, by\u00a02030, the\u00a0U.S. is projected to account for 30 percent of global LNG output.\u00a0A chart included in the statement outlined that the U.S. would continue as the world\u2019s largest LNG exporter in 2030, followed by Qatar and Australia.<\/p>\n
WoodMac also highlighted in its statement that the U.S. \u201cleads global oil production (including oil, condensate, and natural gas liquids), delivering\u00a0one-fifth of the world\u2019s volumes\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn comparison, its closest competitors, Saudi Arabia and Russia, produce only\u00a065 percent and 50 percent\u00a0of U.S. volumes, respectively,\u201d it added. \u00a0<\/p>\n
Malcolm Forbes-Cable,\u00a0Vice\u00a0President,\u00a0Upstream and\u00a0Carbon\u00a0Management Consulting at Wood Mackenzie, said in the statement, \u201cthe resurrection of U.S. LNG is a crucial reminder of what a resource-rich, free-market country like the U.S. can do\u201d.<\/p>\n
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\u201cThis hydrocarbon hegemony is now being\u00a0leveraged\u00a0as a diplomatic tool,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
In its latest short term energy outlook (STEO), which was released on December 9, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) projected that gross U.S. LNG exports will average 14.9 billion cubic feet per day in 2025 and 16.3 billion cubic feet per day in 2026. Gross U.S. LNG exports averaged 11.9 billion cubic feet per day in 2024, this STEO highlighted.<\/p>\n
A quarterly breakdown included in the EIA\u2019s latest STEO forecasted that gross U.S. LNG exports will come in at 16.7 billion cubic feet per day in the fourth quarter of this year, 16.5 billion cubic feet per day in the first quarter of 2026, 16.0 billion cubic feet per day in the second quarter, 15.3 billion cubic feet per day in the third quarter, and 17.7 billion cubic feet per day in the fourth quarter.<\/p>\n
The EIA\u2019s latest STEO also projected that total U.S. crude oil production, including lease condensate, will average 13.61 million barrels per day in 2025 and 13.53 million barrels per day in 2026. In 2024, this output averaged 13.23 million barrels per day, the EIA\u2019s December STEO showed.<\/p>\n
Another quarterly breakdown included in the EIA\u2019s December STEO forecasted that U.S. crude oil production will average 13.86 million barrels per day in the fourth quarter of this year, 13.63 million barrels per day in the first quarter of next year, 13.58 million barrels per day in the second quarter, 13.44 million barrels per day in the third quarter, and 13.49 million barrels per day in the fourth quarter of 2026.<\/p>\n
According to the Energy Institute\u2019s (EI) latest statistical review of world energy, which was released earlier this year, the U.S. was the world\u2019s largest natural gas producer last year with 37.19 exajoules. This figure marked 25.0 percent of the global total, the review highlighted.<\/p>\n
The U.S. was also the world\u2019s largest oil producer, with 20.135 million barrels per day, and crude oil and condensate producer, with 13.194 million barrels per day, in 2024, the EI review showed. The former represented 20.8 percent of global oil production and the latter represented 15.9 percent of global crude oil and condensate production in 2024, the review highlighted.<\/p>\n
The EI report points out that its natural gas figures exclude gas flared or recycled and include natural gas produced for gas-to-liquids transformation. It also highlights that its oil production figures include crude oil, shale oil, oil sands, condensates (lease condensate or gas condensates that require further refining), and NGLs (natural gas liquids – ethane, LPG and naphtha separated from the production of natural gas). They exclude liquid fuels from other sources such as biofuels and synthetic derivatives of coal and natural gas and also exclude liquid fuel adjustment factors such as refinery processing gain, as well as oil shales\/kerogen extracted in solid form, the review outlined.<\/p>\n
In its review, the EI also points out that its crude oil and condensate production figures include crude oil, shale\/tight oil, oil sands, and lease condensate or gas condensates that require further refining. They exclude liquid fuels from other sources such as biomass and synthetic derivatives of coal and natural gas, the review outlines.<\/p>\n
WoodMac\u2019s Horizons report explores \u201cthe themes shaping the energy and natural resources landscape, bringing you crucial insights, new perspectives, bold forecasts and food for thought\u201d, the company\u2019s website notes.<\/p>\n
The EI states in its review that it is the professional membership body for the world of energy. It adds in its publication that the statistical review of world energy analyzes data on world energy markets from the prior year and notes that the review \u201chas been providing timely, comprehensive, and objective data to the energy community since 1952\u201d.<\/p>\n
To contact the author, email\u00a0andreas.exarheas@rigzone.com<\/a><\/p>\n
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