The Export-Import Bank of the United States (US Exim) has signed a US$400mn export insurance deal to support LNG shipments to Turkey.
Under the transaction, New York-based energy trading firm Hartree Partners will export US-sourced LNG to BOTAŞ Petroleum Pipeline Corporation, Turkey’s state-owned energy company.
Hartree Partners founding managing director Stephen Hendel said the deal would “support our wider strategy of delivering low cost, tailor-made and reliable US-sourced LNG supply chain solutions that meet the specific requirements of our customers”.
John Jovanovic, US Exim’s president and chairman, added: “This deal is exactly what we’re here to do – support American workers, strengthen our strategic partnerships, and prove that American energy can fuel the world.”
US Exim said the US is now the world’s largest LNG exporter and shipped more than 111 million metric tonnes in 2025.
Hartree Partners is one of the commodity suppliers that recently signed up to participate in Project Vault, a supply chain security initiative between the US government and several private companies to supply and store raw materials in facilities across the nation.
The increased interest in LNG in recent years has prompted a backlash from climate groups who point out that the ongoing expansion of gas facilities poses a major climate risk.
Last year, US Exim faced legal action over its backing of TotalEnergies’ US$20bn LNG project in Mozambique.
In March, it agreed to provide a US$4.7bn loan for the project, which has faced years of delays and significant security risks in the region.
Yet Friends of the Earth US claimed US Exim “rushed through approval without conducting required environmental reviews, economic assessment, or allowing the required input by the public and Congress”.
The decision also drew political criticism, in part due to the project’s potential for competing directly with US exports of LNG.
