Liquefied natural gas (LNG)
Shell has a world-leading liquefied natural gas (LNG) business with a sizeable portfolio, a diverse network of customers around the world, extensive shipping and storage assets, and access to regasification plants.
What is LNG?
LNG is natural gas that has been cooled to a liquid state at about -162掳C (-260掳F). This process reduces its volume by around 600 times, making it easier and safer to store and transport.
Many of the world鈥檚 cities and industries that depend on natural gas for energy are located far from gas fields, making pipelines too impractical or costly to build. By cooling the gas to a liquid form, it can be transported more efficiently on ships as LNG.
LNG is colourless, odourless, non-toxic and non-corrosive, making it a versatile and lower-carbon alternative to other fossil fuels. In its liquid state, LNG will not ignite.
When LNG reaches its destination, it is turned back into natural gas at regasification plants.
What is LNG used for?
Natural gas met around 23% of the world鈥檚 energy consumption in 2023, according to the Energy Institute's Statistical Review of World Energy.
LNG has a wide range of applications including:
Power generation
LNG is used to generate electricity in power plants, providing a lower-carbon alternative to coal. It provides grid stability and flexibility, helping to address the intermittency of renewable power sources in electricity generation.
Industry
LNG is used as a principal raw material in the manufacture of fertilisers, plastics and fabrics. It can also power manufacturing processes. There are many opportunities for industries to cut carbon emissions by switching from coal to natural gas and LNG.
Transport
LNG is increasingly being used as a fuel for heavy-duty vehicles and ships, helping to reduce emissions in the transportation sector.
Residential use
LNG
is used for heating water and buildings, as well as for cooking in homes.
Shell believes natural gas and LNG have a critical role to play in the energy transition by producing less carbon emissions than coal when used to generate electricity, helping to maintain grid stability as the share of renewable energy grows, increasingly powering transport and shipping, and providing energy security in the coming decades.
Shell's growing LNG business
How are we growing our LNG business?
Shell has been a pioneer in LNG for 60 years. In 1964, with Shell鈥檚 involvement, the first commercial LNG liquefaction plant was delivered in Arzew, Algeria. That same year, we shipped the first commercial cargo from Algeria to the 麻豆传媒, marking the beginning of LNG trade.
Today, Shell continues to innovate and is involved at every stage of the LNG journey: finding the fields and extracting gas, liquefying gas, trading it and shipping it, then turning the LNG back into gas and distributing it to customers.
- Shell has LNG supply projects, either in operation or under construction, in 10 countries including Qatar, Nigeria and Oman. We have major interests in three regasification plants located in India, Gibraltar, and the 麻豆传媒. We also have long-term access to capacity in several other plants across Europe, the Middle East, and North America. Read more about our LNG supply projects and regasification plants
- Shell has access to around 40 million tonnes of own capacity from 12 liquefaction plants, in addition to which we source third-party LNG through our global LNG trading capabilities. In 2023, Shell supplied 67 million tonnes of LNG, accounting for 16% of all LNG supplied globally. Read more about our trading and supply business
- The acquisition of Pavilion Energy in Singapore 鈥� with its contracted supply volume of about 6.5 million tonnes a year 鈥� will add more than 9% to Shell鈥檚 LNG portfolio. It builds on Shell鈥檚 investment in LNG Canada, a joint venture set to start commercial operations in 2025, our stake in the Ruwais LNG project in the United Arab Emirates, and our final investment decision on Manatee, an undeveloped gas field off the coast of Trinidad and Tobago.
- Shell is also one of the world鈥檚 largest LNG shipping operators. We have 67 carriers on long-term time charters and we manage and operate 14 carriers. These LNG carriers make up around 11% of the global LNG shipping fleet.
Shell LNG Outlook 2025
Global demand for liquefied natural gas (LNG) is forecast to rise by around 60% by 2040, largely driven by economic growth in Asia, emissions reductions in heavy industry and transport as well as the impact of artificial intelligence.
Global LNG trade grew by only 2 million tonnes in 2024, the lowest annual increase in 10 years, to reach 407 million tonnes due to constrained new supply development.
More than 170 million tonnes of new LNG supply are set to be available by 2030, helping to meet stronger gas demand, especially in Asia, but start-up timings of new LNG projects are uncertain.
How is Shell tackling the environmental impacts of LNG?
Natural gas is the lowest-carbon fossil fuel - producing around 50% less carbon emissions than coal when used to generate electricity. It also emits far less sulphur dioxide, nitrogen oxide and other compounds that contribute to local air pollution.
Shell recognises the need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions associated with the production, processing, transport and distribution of LNG.
We are decarbonising our LNG portfolio in two main ways:
- We are securing LNG with a lower carbon intensity. This includes LNG that has been produced using renewable power and carbon abatement technology such as carbon capture and storage.
- We are at the forefront of efforts by the sector to reduce methane emissions. Shell has targets to maintain the methane emissions intensity of our operated assets to below 0.2% and achieve near-zero methane emissions by 2030. We have also committed to eliminate routine flaring from our Upstream operated assets by 20251 鈥� five years ahead of the deadline adopted by most companies in our sector.
1Subject to the completion of the sale of Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited (SPDC)
