Shale set to pummel another market, as U.S. LNG plants arrive

The U.S. is about to change the global LNG market forever. When the first tanker carrying LNG from shale fields leaves the Sabine Pass terminal in Louisiana in December, it will turn consumers into traders with more bargaining power. That will transform a market dominated by long-term contracts into one where spot trading gains prominence, similar to crude oil. Since the first LNG cargo went to the U.K. from Algeria under a long-term contract in 1964, buyers opted for guaranteed supply, because the fuel was scarce. That’s changing, because gas from the Eagle Ford and other plays will transform the U.S. into the third-biggest exporter by 2020. More »