Henry Hub natural gas spot prices are set to average $2.73/MMBtu during the second quarter of 2021 and should average $3.04 for the year, a dramatic increase over 2020 prices, according to updated projections from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA).

Spot prices at the national benchmark averaged $2.62 in March, EIA said in the April 2021 edition of its Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO), published Tuesday. That’s down sharply from February prices, when a bout of extreme cold temperatures and associated market disruptions led to an average spot price of $5.35.

The forecast 2021 average spot price of $3.04 would come in more than $1 above the 2020 average of $2.03.

“We expect that continued growth in liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports, with only a slight...