U.S. ethane consumption to grow faster than other petroleum products by 2023

U.
S.
ethane consumption has grown every year since 2010, and now consumes more ethane than jet fuel or propane, the EIA said on its website
.

Ethane consumption increased by 50,000 bpd in 2021, according to EIA's March 2022 Petroleum Supply Monthly
.
U.
S.
ethane consumption will increase by another 340,000 bpd by 2023, according to EIA forecasts
.

Annual U.
S.
ethane consumption has increased every year since 2010 due to growing demand for ethane as a petrochemical feedstock
.
Ethane is primarily used as a petrochemical feedstock to produce ethylene, which in turn is used to make plastics and resins
.

Domestic ethane consumption has increased over the past two years due to increased ethylene cracking capacity
.
In contrast, consumption of most other petroleum products has declined over the past two years due to reduced travel during the Covid-19 pandemic
.

U.
S.
ethane consumption is growing in 2021 despite a winter storm in the U.
S.
Gulf of Mexico in mid-February that shut down more than a third of U.
S.
ethylene cracking capacity
.
With roughly 90% of U.
S.
ethane consumption concentrated on the Gulf Coast, the storm disruption reduced ethane consumption by 655,000 bpd in February 2021
.
Despite this decline, the addition of two new ethylene crackers in the second half of 2021 drove the overall increase in ethane consumption in 2021
.

U.
S.
ethane consumption is projected to average 2.
1 million b/d in 2022 and 2023, according to EIA, as another ethylene cracker recently completed in Monaca, Pennsylvania, is expected to add 96,000 b/d of ethane feedstock capacity , while the existing ethylene cracker will operate at a higher utilization rate
.