BAKU, Azerbaijan, February 12. The gas demand in the US in January 2024 amounted to 118 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d), Trend reports.
According to the US Energy Information Administration (EIA), this marked a record-breaking natural gas consumption level, the most in any month on record.
The combined residential and commercial usage for natural gas in January averaged around 46 Bcf/d, surpassing January 2023 by 4 Bcf/d. Additionally, the consumption of natural gas for electricity generation saw a notable rise of 5 Bcf/d compared to the previous year, reaching a new January record of nearly 37 Bcf/d.
Despite a brief cold snap that momentarily spiked natural gas prices, the Henry Hub spot price remained below $3 per million British thermal units (MMBtu) for the majority of January, leading to an increased reliance on natural gas for electricity generation, the EIA noted.
Thus, the agency anticipates a slight uptick in natural gas consumption within the US residential and commercial sectors for 2024, averaging around 22 Bcf/d.
The peak demand for natural gas in these sectors typically occurs during winter months, primarily driven by increased space heating requirements. However, the EIA projections for February and March 2024 indicate a lower-than-average natural gas consumption due to milder weather conditions, characterized by 4-percent fewer heating degree days (HDDs) compared to the preceding 10-year average (2014–2023) for those two months. It's worth noting that potential winter storms could significantly impact consumption patterns.
Furthermore, the agency expects a decrease in natural gas exports in February compared to January. This is attributed to a partial outage at the Freeport LNG facility that commenced toward the end of January and is expected to last approximately a month, affecting overall export volumes during that period.