71.5% of the natural gas that Spain imported in the first nine months of 2022 did so by sea in the form of liquefied natural gas (LNG) on board methane tankers, compared to 50.1% that it imported by this route during the same period last year, according to data from the most recent Enagás statistical bulletin.
Between January and September 2022, methane tankers have unloaded the equivalent of 240,808 gigawatt hours (GWh) of LNG at Spanish regasification plants, 60% more than the 150,784 GWh in the same period last year. The number of ships has gone from 169 to 252 in the same period, 49.1% more.
In terms of origin, the United States is the largest exporter of gas by sea to Spain, with 102,694 GWh so far this year, 42.6% of the total LNG imported by sea; followed by Algeria, with 77,146 GWh (32.0%); and Nigeria, with 48,705 (20.2%).
If we take into account total gas imports (by gas pipeline and by sea), Algeria regained first place as a supplier in September, to the detriment of the US, which had been since last January. Algerian imports reached 8,931 GWh, 25.4% of the total supply, during the month of September. Of these, 7,962 GWh came through the Medgaz gas pipeline and 969 GWh by sea.
