TotalEnergies SE reported a 10% sequential decline in second quarter LNG sales, but stronger prices for the super-chilled fuel helped the company cruise to a record profit.

The sales decline was mainly due to the outage at the Freeport liquefied natural gas terminal on the Upper Texas coast, where TotalEnergies has long-term offtake agreements in place. Freeport has been offline since a June explosion. Planned maintenance at the Ichthys LNG terminal in Australia and the Idku LNG facility in Egypt, where the company holds equity stakes, also cut into third quarter sales. 

The company sold 10.4 million tons (Mt) of LNG during the period, compared to 11.7 Mt in 2Q2022. Volumes were up from 10 Mt in 3Q2021, however, primarily due to an increase in spot purchases to maximize the use...