The Gas Tankers Lurking at Sea Looking for a Better Deal
- Less LNG evaporation means more flexibility to find best buyer
- Gas market looking more like oil as ships become trading tools
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When the tanker Provalys left Louisiana for Chile last month with a full load of U.S. liquefied natural gas, it sailed around South America instead of taking a shortcut through the expanded Panama Canal. Not only may the route be cheaper without canal transit fees, but advances in technology mean less of the fuel would end up lost at sea during the journey.
Gas is frozen into liquid for transport over long distances without pipelines, allowing surplus American reserves to be shipped to high-demand regions like Asia. Trouble is, some LNG evaporates on the voyage. A new generation of ships is reducing such losses, giving traders more flexibility to choose the scenic route in search of the highest prices.