HOUSTON, March 12 (Reuters) - Argentina has not

requested an additional floating regasification plant from

Excelerate Energy ( EE ) for the winter to come, a company

executive said, as the South American country plans lower

imports of liquefied natural gas this year.

Derek Wong, Excelerate's vice president of government

relations, told Reuters on the sidelines of the CERAWeek

conference in Houston that the floating storage and

regasification unit (FSRU) the company has in service, the only

import facility in Argentina, might be enough to meet demand

again this year, depending on weather conditions.

Costly LNG imports have been a problem for Argentina in the

past, but increasing domestic output of natural gas has allowed

lower imports of gas via pipeline from Bolivia and also of LNG

cargoes in recent years.

Argentina's Economy Vice Minister and Head of Energy Daniel

Gonzalez said earlier this week at the conference that the

country this year would import fewer LNG cargoes than last year,

but declined to elaborate on figures.

Cold winters in the Southern Hemisphere typically increase

gas consumption in Argentina, sometimes creating the need to put

another FSRU in service.

Last year, only one FSRU was needed to import 30 LNG cargoes

during the winter, while in the two previous years between 41

and 44 cargoes were imported through FSRUs at Bahia Blanca and

Escobar.

Following President Javier Milei's economic reforms,

Argentina last year had a $5.7 billion surplus at its energy

trade balance, a big achievement for a country that had

struggled to cover the cost of energy imports in previous years.