US LNG vessel departures climbed to 36 in the week ended 12 August, up five from the previous week, according to the US Energy Information Administration.
The ships had combined LNG-carrying capacity of 134 billion cubic feet (Bcf), compared with 119 Bcf for 31 vessels a week earlier.
The figure represents vessel carrying capacity rather than the volume of LNG actually loaded.
Sabine Pass led US export terminals with eight departures, followed by Corpus Christi with seven and Plaquemines with six. Freeport handled five vessels, Cameron four, Calcasieu Pass three, Elba Island two and Cove Point one.
In the previous week, Sabine Pass recorded seven sailings, Plaquemines six and Corpus Christi five.
The EIA expects US LNG exports to average 16.5 Bcf per day in the third quarter of 2026, 0.2 Bcf per day below its previous forecast.
Maintenance at the Freeport LNG export terminal began on 10 July and is expected to continue into late August, affecting 2.0 Bcf per day of nominal export capacity in the short term.
US LNG exports have increased from 0.5 Bcf per day in 2016, when the first cargo departed Sabine Pass, to 15.0 Bcf per day in 2025.
Cheniere Energy is a US energy company whose LNG assets include the Sabine Pass terminal in Louisiana and the Corpus Christi complex in Texas. As of 31 March 2026, Sabine Pass had more than 30 million tonnes per annum of LNG production capacity in operation, while Corpus Christi had more than 30 mtpa of expected production capacity, including capacity under construction.