ENB PUB Note: The DOE report shows France was the top destination, and I included the total energy summary of different types and who else they buy LNG from.
France’s Energy Mix
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Electricity Generation (2020 data, as a representative snapshot):
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Nuclear Power: ~78% of electricity generation, making France the world’s largest producer of nuclear electricity per capita. France operates 56 nuclear reactors, contributing to its low-carbon electricity mix.
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Renewables: 19.1% of energy consumption, including hydroelectricity (12%), wind, solar, and biofuels. The government aims to increase this to 32% by 2030.
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Fossil Fuels:
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Natural Gas: ~8.6% of electricity production, used primarily in combined-cycle plants and cogeneration.
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Coal: Minimal and declining, with coal-fired power plants nearly phased out (consumption dropped 48% from 2013 to 2023).
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Oil: Negligible in electricity generation, mainly used in transportation and industry.
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Total Energy Consumption (Primary Energy Supply):
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Nuclear: Dominates due to its role in electricity, covering over half of primary energy production.
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Fossil Fuels: France imports most of its fossil fuels (oil, natural gas, coal), with oil products at 62 Mt in 2023 (30% below 2001 peak) and natural gas at ~15% of total energy consumption.
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Renewables: Targeted at 25.3% of gross final energy consumption in 2022, supported by €6 billion in 2021 investments.
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Bioenergy: Includes modern and traditional sources, significant in domestic energy production.
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Total LNG Imports (2023):
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France imported 30.7 billion cubic meters (bcm) of LNG in 2023, making it Europe’s largest LNG importer and the world’s fifth-largest LNG market. This accounted for ~90% of its total gas consumption, up from less than half in 2020.
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Imports by Country of Origin (2023):
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United States: The largest supplier, contributing the majority of France’s LNG imports.
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Algeria: The second-largest supplier, providing a significant share.
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Russia: Despite efforts to reduce reliance, Russia remained a key supplier, with an 81% surge in LNG imports in 2024 (data for 2023 shows Russia as the second-largest supplier). France imported ~€2.68 billion worth of Russian LNG in 2024, including €600 million in Q1.
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Qatar: Supplies LNG under long-term agreements, with a 27-year deal signed in 2023 for 3.5 million tons annually starting in 2026.
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Other Countries: Include Nigeria, Norway, Trinidad and Tobago, and Angola, with combined imports valued at ~€2.4 billion in 2024.
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Trends and Infrastructure:
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Surge in Imports: LNG imports jumped 87% in 2022 due to reduced Russian pipeline gas and nuclear reactor outages, with France boosting imports more than any other major buyer.
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Decline in 2023: Total LNG imports decreased in 2023 compared to 2022, reflecting lower gas consumption (down to a 10-year low of 1.351 bcm in August 2023) and high storage levels.
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LNG Terminals: France operates four LNG terminals (Fos-sur-Mer, Montoir-de-Bretagne, Dunkerque, and a smaller facility), with a total regasification capacity expanded by 6.5 bcm since 2022. These terminals operated at full capacity in 2022 but saw lower utilization in 2023.
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Russian LNG Transshipments: France transshipped 1.68 bcm of Russian LNG from the Yamal plant in 2022 and 0.89 bcm from January to July 2023, destined for other markets.
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Future Outlook:
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Despite plans to expand LNG infrastructure, falling gas consumption (down 9% in 2022 and lower in 2023) raises questions about the need for additional capacity. The IEEFA forecasts Europe’s 2030 regasification capacity could be three times higher than LNG demand.
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France’s reliance on LNG is likely to remain “sticky” for energy security, supporting both national needs and exports to neighbors like Switzerland, Italy, and Germany.
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The EU aims to phase out Russian fossil fuels by 2027, but France’s imports of Russian LNG increased by 81% in 2024, complicating this goal.
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Energy Dependency: France imports over half of its energy, particularly fossil fuels, making it vulnerable to supply disruptions. Diversified LNG sources (via terminals) and pipeline gas from Norway (31%), the Netherlands (18%), and Algeria (16%) mitigate risks.
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Policy and Transition: France’s 2019 Energy and Climate Act targets net-zero emissions by 2050, with a 55% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. Investments in renewables, new nuclear reactors, and energy efficiency aim to reduce fossil fuel reliance, but LNG remains critical in the transition.
Source LNGPrime.com
The DOE LNG monthly report shows that US terminals shipped 70.3 Bcf to France (15.3 percent), 56.8 Bcf to the Netherlands (12.4 percent), 51.9 Bcf to Spain (11.3 percent), 38.5 Bcf to the UK (8.4 percent), and 31.3 Bcf to Italy (6.8 percent) in March.
These five countries took 54.3 percent of total US LNG exports in March.
LNG import terminals in Turkiye and the UK were the top destinations for US LNG cargoes in January and February 2025, December and November 2024, while France was the top destination for US LNG supplies in October, and the Netherlands was the top destination for US LNG cargoes in September last year.
DOE’s data previously showed that the Netherlands was the top destination for US LNG supplies in 2024 with 463.8 Bcf or 139 cargoes, down by 21 percent year-on-year, while France took 354.8 Bcf or 108 cargoes, down by 28 percent year-on-year.
The DOE report shows that the US exported 458 Bcf of LNG to 29 countries in March, up 23.8 percent from the same month in 2024 and a rise of 11.9 percent compared to the prior month.
In September 2024, Europe again became the preferred destination for US LNG cargoes over Asia, and this remained the case in the following months.
Europe received 338.9 Bcf (74 percent), Asia 82.3 Bcf (18 percent), Latin America/Caribbean 22.6 Bcf (4.9 percent), and Africa 14.2 Bcf (3.1 percent), in March.
DOE said that 90.2 percent of total LNG exports went to non-free trade agreement countries, while the remaining 9.8 percent went to free trade agreement countries.
Moreover, US terminals shipped 135 LNG cargoes in March, up from 116 cargoes in February.
Cheniere’s Sabine Pass plant sent 39 cargoes, and its Corpus Christi terminal shipped 19 cargoes, while the Freeport LNG terminal shipped 21 cargoes.
Sempra’s Cameron LNG terminal sent 18 cargoes, Venture Global’s Plaquemines plant shipped 14 cargoes and its Calcasieu plant sent 12 cargoes, while the Cove Point LNG terminal dispatched eight shipments.
The Elba Island plant also shipped one cargo during the month under review.
In addition, DOE noted that NFE’s Altamira LNG terminal in Mexico shipped one cargo in March. This project receives feed gas from the US and Mexico.
According to DOE’s report, the average price by export terminal reached 8.55/MMBtu in March.
This compares to 5.47/MMBtu in March 2024 and 8.11/MMBtu in February 2025.
The most expensive average price in March came from Venture Global’s Calcasieu Pass terminal, and it reached $13.28/MMBtu, followed by Plaquemines LNG with $11.73/MMBtu.
Prices at other facilities ranged between $4.60/MMBtu (Elba Island) to $8.27/MMBtu (Freeport LNG), the data shows.
The report said that from February 2016 through March 2025, the US exported 7459 cargoes or 23,583.9 Bcf to 42 countries if Mauritania and Senegal are couted as one coutnry (the GTA LNG project).
The DOE data shows that South Korea remains the top destination for US LNG, with 677 cargoes, followed by France with 619 cargoes, Japan with 566 cargoes, the Netherlands with 563 cargoes, and the UK with 561 cargoes.
In addition to these five countries, Spain, China, Turkiye, India, and Italy are in the top ten.
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