The U.S. LNG export boom, strongly supported by the Trump Administration, could be undermined by separate trade rules proposed by the very same administration, which looks to revive America’s shipbuilding to counter China’s dominance.
Under new mandates proposed by the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR), beginning in 2028, a total of 1% of America’s LNG exports must be carried via U.S.-flagged vessels. From 2029 onwards, 1% of U.S. LNG exports should be shipped on U.S.-flagged and U.S.-built vessels.
This number will gradually rise over the decades, and by 2047, a total of 15% of all U.S. LNG exports should be carried on U.S.-built U.S.-flagged LNG tankers.
Just 1% of exports may look like a negligible figure if one doesn’t consider that the United States is the world’s largest LNG exporter, the current operational global LNG fleet has just one U.S.-flagged vessel (but built in France), and that building an LNG tanker in the United States will take years and probably cost two to four times the price of building a vessel in South Korea or China.
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