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Algeria ranked 7th in the world in terms of exported volumes of natural gas in 2023, with a total of 52 billion m3, according to the International Gas Union (IGU) in its latest report. The United States became the world’s largest net exporter of LNG in 2023, overtaking Australia and Qatar to reach 117 billion m3 of exports.
Global Gas Report 2024″, the document produced in collaboration with the Italian natural gas transport operator “Snam” and the independent energy research and monitoring company “Rystad Energy”, states that Algeria exported a total of 18 billion m3 (mds m3) of liquefied natural gas (LNG) and 34 mds m3 by gas pipeline during the past year.
Leading the global natural gas export ranking, Russia exported 139 billion m3 last year, followed by Qatar (128 billion m3), the United States (127 billion m3), Norway (120 billion m3), Australia (110 billion m3) and Canada (53 billion m3).
The report also reveals the ranking of countries in terms of natural gas imports. China occupies the first place with a total of 160 billion m3 imported during the past year. Japan (91 billion m3) and Germany (77 billion m3) complete the first three places in this ranking.
In terms of demand, Asia’s import needs continued to increase in 2023, a trend that is expected to continue through 2024, “as countries like China increasingly rely on gas imports,” the IGU said. In contrast, European demand decreased due to lower seasonal needs and reduced demand from the electricity and industrial sectors.
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Global gas markets remain in a “fragile” balance, with limited supply growth while demand is increasing steadily, up 1.5% in 2023, with an expected acceleration to 2.1% by the end of 2024. If gas demand continues to grow as it has over the past four years, without the development of additional production, a deficit of 22% of global supply is expected by 2030, the report warns, stressing the “urgent” need to increase investment in the sector.
To make the global gas market balance resilient, “it is essential to increase investment in natural gas supply and develop biomethane, carbon capture and storage, and low-carbon hydrogen technologies,” the report argues. According to the report, natural gas now offers an “immediate” opportunity to reduce CO2 emissions by 50% through a cost-effective transition.
