Recently, Egypt’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) import process has experienced fluctuations, with multiple transport vessels stranded outside receiving terminals due to seasonal demand drops and unloading schedule issues.
According to Bloomberg, citing ship tracking data, three LNG carriers originally scheduled to complete unloading within the past six days remain anchored at the Egyptian terminal in the Red Sea. The “Gaslog Gladstone,” after waiting for 11 days, docked on Thursday, while two other carriers are heading towards the relevant sea area.
Informed sources revealed that as Egypt transitioned into a net LNG importer in 2024 and significantly increased imports this year, it has frequently encountered challenges in demand assessment and arrival scheduling. The country’s LNG consumption fluctuates significantly, influenced both by weather and international gas prices. This has placed considerable pressure on international traders who have supply agreements with Egypt.
In July of this year, Egypt postponed the delivery of some cargoes because new terminals were not yet operational. This month, a rare situation occurred where one LNG cargo was exported, while import demand declined. Typically, summer is the peak gas consumption season for Egypt, but weather forecasts indicate that local temperatures will be lower than usual starting in October, further weakening demand expectations.
According to supply agreements, Egypt originally planned to import 48 LNG cargoes in the fourth quarter: 18 in October, 15 in November, and 15 in December, which is lower than the 66 cargoes in the third quarter. However, the latest data shows that October arrivals have been revised down to 14 cargoes, significantly lower than the original plan. To address the potential shortfall, Egyptian Natural Gas Co. (EGAS) has temporarily arranged for two additional emergency import cargoes.
EGAS has not yet commented on this matter. Data shows that Egypt’s LNG imports hit a record in August, but deliveries have declined since September began.
