US liquefied natural gas exports averaged 17.4 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) in the first half of 2026, up 23 percent from the same period last year, the Energy Information Administration said in its latest short-term energy outlook. EIA called it the fastest growth rate in US LNG exports since large-scale exports began in 2016.
The agency expects exports to average 17.3 Bcf/d in the second half of 2026, then climb to 18.7 Bcf/d in the first half of 2027.
New capacity comes online
Venture Global's Plaquemines LNG is now exporting at full capacity, and Cheniere Energy has completed the Corpus Christi Stage 3 project. EIA said the two terminals, once fully built out, will add a combined 4.0 Bcf/d of nominal export capacity. Golden Pass LNG, owned by QatarEnergy and ExxonMobil, began exporting in April 2026 and is expected to keep raising output from its first production train through the rest of the year, adding another 0.7 Bcf/d of nominal capacity. EIA said the terminal's second train is due to be completed in late 2026.
A Hormuz disruption lifted prices
EIA said global LNG prices stayed high enough through the first half of the year to keep US exports running near maximum output. In March, disruptions to shipments through the Strait of Hormuz cut off 20 percent of global LNG supply, most of it from Qatar. Asian buyers, who take in about 80 percent of Qatar's LNG, had to compete for spot cargoes on the open market as a result.
Europe's benchmark Title Transfer Facility price averaged $14.74 per million British thermal units (MMBtu) in the first half of the year, up from $13.10/MMBtu a year earlier and the highest since the first half of 2022, when prices hit $32.42/MMBtu after Russia's invasion of Ukraine cut European buyers off from piped Russian gas. The Japan-Korea Marker, the benchmark for LNG imports into East Asia, reached a four-year high of $15.56/MMBtu, up $2.38/MMBtu from the first half of 2025, as hot weather lifted spot demand in the region. EIA cited Bloomberg data for that figure. Domestic gas stayed far cheaper by comparison: Henry Hub spot gas averaged $3.06/MMBtu as of June 15, 2026, according to EIA.
Asian shipments doubled
EIA said the Hormuz disruption contributed to a doubling of US LNG shipments to Asia in the first half of the year compared with the same period in 2025. Exports to Asia rose 2.3 Bcf/d, or 108 percent, while exports to Europe rose 0.1 Bcf/d, or 1 percent. Exports to Latin America and the Caribbean and the Middle East and North Africa combined rose 0.8 Bcf/d, or 46 percent.
Where the cargoes went
Top destination countries for US LNG in the first half of 2026, by average volume:
| Destination | H1 2026 average |
|---|---|
| Egypt | 1.7 Bcf/d |
| Netherlands | 1.7 Bcf/d |
| Italy | 1.4 Bcf/d |
| France | 1.2 Bcf/d |
| United Kingdom | 1.1 Bcf/d |
