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The first investments in Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) technologies date back to the 1970s, but it is only in the last decade that a real globalisation of the gas market was triggered due to this possibility of affordable sea transportation.
LNG actually offers clear benefits in terms of safety and flexibility. The gas market is no longer tied to the continuity and operation of fixed pipeline networks and recompression stations, which often cross countries and regions and come with potential geographic and political complexities, but, it becomes more fluid and dynamic through the movement by sea, through the use of ships. And, transport costs become cheaper on longer routes, offering higher marketing opportunities for producing countries and supply opportunities for consuming countries.
The benefits of LNG
The technology of liquefaction of natural gas, which takes place by bringing it to temperatures lower than -161.4 °C, makes it possible to reduce the specific volume of the gas by about 600 times compared to standard conditions, allowing for competitive costs for storage and transport in considerably smaller spaces. LNG is transported by sea by means of LNG carriers, where the temperature in the liquid phase at pressure is close to atmospheric, but at cryogenic temperatures.
The flexibility offered by ship transport also makes it possible to reach remote areas by intercepting price variations between different markets.
LNG: energy over long distances
According to the latest IEA report, the leading net importers of liquefied natural gas (LNG) remain concentrated in Asia, although the ranking has changed slightly in recent years. Japan still tops the global table, even though its volumes fell by 8% in 2023 (-20% on 2018) thanks to greater nuclear availability. China follows, down around 4 %, in part because of higher pipeline flows from Russia. South Korea holds third place, with imports estimated to have contracted by roughly 2% as renewables and nuclear generation expand. France is now fourth, buoyed by Europe’s sharp increase in LNG purchases (+25 % in 2025, or about 33 billion cubic metres). Next come Taiwan, the only Asian market to grow in the first half of 2025, up about 100,000 tonnes after the shutdown of its last nuclear reactor, and India, which is meeting its energy needs with broadly stable volumes but slowing from the strong growth seen in 2023.
In the United States, rising domestic output has further strengthened the country’s position in the global LNG market. In 2025 the US remains the world’s largest exporter, accounting for roughly 85 % of the increase in overall capacity. Global supply is expected to grow by about 27 billion m³ (+5 %), driven largely by new US projects. Australia also keeps production steady and now hosts the greatest number of LNG facilities under construction worldwide, while Russia, Malaysia and Nigeria record more modest growth. Ambitious development plans continue in Mozambique, Tanzania and Canada.
The author: Luca Longo
An industrial chemist specialising in theoretical chemistry. He was a researcher for 30 years before moving into science communication at Eni.
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