21/03/25
US ethane output, demand at records in 2024: EIA
US ethane output, demand at records in 2024: EIA
Houston, 21 March (Argus) — US ethane production rose to a record last year on
higher prices relative to natural gas, while exports and domestic consumption
climbed to new highs on increased petrochemical demand, the US Energy
Information Administration (EIA) said Thursday. US ethane output in 2024 rose by
6.8pc to an all-time high of 2.83mn b/d, up from 2.65mn b/d in 2023, according
to EIA data. Most of the production increase came from the Permian basin, with
Texas inland output increasing by 139,000 b/d to a record 1.58mn b/d and New
Mexico refining districts rising by 9,000 b/d to 191,000 b/d, also a record. In
the US east coast, the Appalachian No. 1 refining district, comprising much of
the Marcellus shale formation in Pennsylvania and West Virginia, increased
production by 37,000 b/d to a record 327,000 b/d, accounting for 12pc of total
US production, up from 11pc in 2023. The production hike resulted from higher
rates of ethane recovery from the natural gas stream, EIA said. Recovery was
incentivized as ethane prices strengthened relative to natural gas. During 2024,
Mont Belvieu, EPC ethane's premium to its fuel value — based on day-ahead
natural gas at the Waha hub in west Texas — averaged 17.91¢/USG, up from
13.64¢/USG in 2023, even as outright ethane prices averaged 5.55¢/USG lower at
19.02¢/USG, according to Argus data. The increase in Permian ethane recovery
resulted in large part from negative Waha gas prices for large swaths of the
year. US consumption rises 8.4pc Product supplied of ethane, a measure of
domestic consumption, rose last year by 8.4pc to a record 2.33mn b/d, up from
2.15mn b/d in 2023, according to EIA data. Consumption rose to records in the US
east coast and Gulf coast regions, driven entirely by higher cracker operating
rates, as no new ethane crackers came online during the year. Ethane consumption
in the US Gulf coast rose by 109,000 b/d to 2.1mn b/d, while consumption in the
US east coast nearly tripled to 103,000 b/d, up from 37,000 b/d in 2023. The
east coast surge was driven by Shell's 1.6mn t/yr Monaca, Pennsylvania, ethane
cracker ramping up production after coming online near the end of 2022 . Exports
climb 4.5pc US ethane exports last year rose by 4.5pc to a record 492,000 b/d,
up by 21,000 b/d from 2023, the EIA reported. China took the bulk of shipments
and saw the largest increase in imports, spurred by increased petrochemical
demand and ramped-up construction of import infrastructure. The US exported
227,000 b/d of ethane to China, up by 14,000 b/d from 2023. Ethane exports to
Canada rose to 76,000 b/d, up by 11,000 b/d from 2023, while exports to India
fell by 9,000 b/d to 65,000 b/d. Ethane shipments to Mexico averaged 21,000 b/d
last year, up from 17,000 b/d in 2023. The Asia-Pacific region last year took
nearly 60pc of US ethane exports, followed by the Americas at just over 20pc and
Europe at just under 20pc. The Americas were broadly responsible for most of the
growth in imports from the US year-on-year, with receipts up by 17,000 b/d and
the proportion of the total rising for the first time since 2020. The proportion
of exports going to the Asia-Pacific region fell for the first time since 2018,
in part because attacks in the Red Sea slowed exports to India during the first
half of 2024. Ethane exports from the US are poised to rise further in the next
three years, as Enterprise Products' new Neches River terminal in Texas, which
will be able to ship up to 360,000 b/d of ethane or propane, is scheduled for
operations in starting in 2026. Energy Transfer's Marcus Hook, Pennsylvania,
export terminal, which can ship 75,000 b/d of ethane, is adding refrigeration to
boost its capacity to 90,000 b/d. By Joseph Barbour Send comments and request
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