Spain’s LNG Imports Surge to 69% Amid Algerian Pipeline Closure

Nearly 69% (68.8%) of the natural gas imported by Spain arrived in December in methane carriers in the form of liquefied natural gas (LNG), compared to 47.6% during the same period in 2020, according to Enagás statistics for the month of December.

This increase is a consequence of the closure, since the end of October, of the Maghreb-Europe (GME) gas pipeline linking Algeria to Spain via Morocco, reports El Periodico de la Energia, specifying that Medgaz remains the only source of gas supply for Spain from Algeria. In December, this pipeline imported 31.2% of the gas, the remaining 68.8% arriving by ship in the form of LNG.

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The trend has reversed slightly since December, analyzes the same source, noting that in 2020, 52.4% of the natural gas imported arrived by pipeline against 47.6% in the form of LNG. Despite this situation, Algeria remained Spain’s main gas supplier in 2021, with 416,685 GWh, or -42.7% of all imported gas, including 154,565 GWh by pipeline and 23,425 GWh in the form of LNG. The United States follows with 59,870 GWh, or 14.4% of imports, and Nigeria with 47,690 GWh, or 11.4% of imports.