The U.S. took a big step toward becoming a major exporter of liquefied natural gas (LNG) in 2016 as Cheniere Energy’s Sabine Pass export terminal in Louisiana came online early last year and upgrades to the Panama Canal that opened in June made shipments to the Pacific region considerably easier. Data from the Department of Energy (DOE) through December 2016 show the U.S. exported 109 billion cubic feet (Bcf) of LNG through December 16, an average of about 0.3 Bcf/d for the year as a whole.

But the predominant destinations were not what most experts had predicted. Despite signs that U.S. LNG would seek out high-priced markets in east Asia and lower-priced-but-still-attractive markets in Europe, the majority of exports went somewhere else entirely: Latin America.

DOE data show that only two shipments went to Europe (one to Spain and the other to Portugal) while only a single one went to China, for a total of just 9.7 Bcf. Four shipments went to India, totaling 13.8 Bcf.…

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