The why, where and who of liquefied natural gas import infrastructures in Europe

Abstract

Since 2016, many European countries have started importing liquefied natural gas by vessels from the United States to meet their energy needs. Such volumes of imports grew dramatically during 2022 following the decision to reduce reliance on Russian gas supplies. In Europe, investments in LNG import terminals therefore becomes a necessary condition for these exchanges to happen. Despite their great contribution to energy security, there might be also arguments against investments in such infrastructures. The growing presence of these terminals is a step backwards compared to the challenges posed by the energy transition, as importing gas implies accepting a polluting fossil fuel for meeting consumption needs. In addition, in some countries such as Italy, a problem of social acceptability might rise, as the structure is per se contested mainly due to its intrusive effect in the local context.

This contribution reflects on how the trade of natural gas is not restricted to continental borders, but it has taken a global dimension in recent decades. In fact, the development of gas transformation technologies and transport infrastructure enable much greater geographic flexibility to international gas trade. Using secondary data, the contribution analyzes how liquefied gas imports from the United States to various European countries have changed over the last few years, looking at variables such as quantity and price. Attention is also given on how the European territory is equipped with such import infrastructures and is preparing to receive even more volumes in this era of geopolitical shift. The increasing importance of LNG imports for the European society does not only require considerations on the available capacity of LNG import facilities, but also an analysis of the stakeholders that at the various scales are empowered or affected due to the development of such infrastructures.