US ethane production, consumption, and exports set new records in 2024
Published by Oliver Kleinschmidt,
Assistant Editor
Hydrocarbon Engineering,
US ethane production, consumption, and exports reached record highs in 2024, according to recent data from the US Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) Petroleum Supply Monthly. Increasing ethane recovery associated with natural gas production and continued growth in the domestic and global petrochemical sectors drove these increases.
US ethane production rose 7% to average a record 2.8 million bpd in 2024, driven by increased ethane recovery in the Permian Basin. In the US, almost all ethane is recovered at natural gas processing plants, which remove ethane and other natural gas plant liquids (NGPL) from raw natural gas. The Texas Inland and New Mexico refining districts, which span the Permian Basin, accounted for 63% of all US ethane production in 2024, up from 61% in 2023. Production in those districts averaged 1.8 million bpd, up 9% from 2023. The Appalachian No. 1 Refining District, which straddles most of the Appalachian Basin in Pennsylvania and West Virginia, produced a record 327 000 bpd in 2024, up 13% from 2023. It accounted for 12% of the US total, up from 11% the previous year.
Domestic ethane consumption, measured as product supplied, rose 8% in 2024 to a record 2.3 million bpd. In the US, ethane is consumed almost exclusively in the petrochemical industry as a feedstock for steam crackers to produce ethylene. The rise in consumption came from higher cracker operating rates in 2024 compared with 2023, as no new crackers came online in the US in 2024. Ethane consumption on the US Gulf Coast rose 5% to 2.1 million bpd in 2024. On the East Coast, consumption nearly tripled to 103 000 bpd in 2024 as Shell’s cracker in Monaca, Pennsylvania, continued to ramp up its production after starting up in late 2022.
US ethane exports averaged a record 492 000 bpd in 2024, a 21 000 bpd increase from the previous record set in 2023. Growth in global petrochemical sector demand and rising tanker capacity have driven the increases in US ethane exports. Ethane exports increased almost every year since 2014 except in 2020 when muted global demand related to the COVID-19 pandemic caused a slight decrease in exports. Low prices for US ethane compared with other feedstocks globally contributed to the record exports in 2024. China imported 46% of US ethane exports, followed by Canada (15%), India (13%), and Norway (9%).
US ethane prices at Mont Belvieu, Texas, the main pricing hub for NGPLs, were volatile through 2024. Ethane prices averaged under 20¢/gal. for the year (approximately US$3 million Btu) but averaged 25¢/gal. (US$3.70 million Btu) in December as natural gas prices rose to 2024 highs. In comparison, the natural gas price at the Houston Ship Channel averaged US$1.86 million Btu in 2024 but averaged US$2.66 million Btu during the month of December, the highest monthly average of the year. When ethane prices are high relative to natural gas prices, plant operators can recover more ethane from the natural gas stream. However, when ethane prices and natural gas prices are closer, more ethane can be left in the natural gas stream and sold for its heat value.
In our March 2025 Short-Term Energy Outlook, we forecast that average US ethane production will remain flat at 2.8 million bpd in 2025 and rise to 3.0 million bpd in 2026. Average US ethane consumption will remain flat at 2.3 million bpd in 2025 and 2026, and exports will increase to 530 000 bpd in 2025 and 630 000 bpd in 2026.
Read the article online at: https://www.hydrocarbonengineering.com/gas-processing/21032025/us-ethane-production-consumption-and-exports-set-new-records-in-2024/
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