According to Bloomberg, after briefly surpassing Qatar and Australia as the world’s top LNG exporters, the US lost the top spot to Qatar in April when volumes in the north fell along with demand for heating fuel. Qatar exported 7.5 million metric tonnes of LNG in April.

Due to the end of the winter season and decreasing demand for heating fuel, American LNG production fell in April. However, with commitments to assist the European Union in replacing Russian gas and a new American export terminal set to open soon, the United States could recover the top spot later this year.

Soaring demand for US LNG has resurrected previously dormant export projects, and the U.S. government has approved additional export licences for projects in the works. More LNG imports from two under construction plants were also approved by the government last week.

They are Golden Pass LNG, headquartered in Texas, owned by Exxon and Qatar Petroleum and scheduled to begin operations in 2025, and the Magnolia LNG project in Louisiana, owned by Glenfame Group LLC and set to begin operations in 2027.

The ramp-up launch of the Louisiana-based Calcasieu Pass export terminal, which is the seventh export terminal to commence production in the United States since 2016, will add to U.S. LNG shipments in the coming months. According to the EIA, this port can process 3.1 billion cubic feet per day and has two shipping docks that can carry up to 185,000 cubic meters.

Calcasieu received its first LNG shipment on March 1st, and natural gas deliveries to the terminal have been steadily increasing since the start of the year.