The natural-gas liquefaction process is an important sector of the overall liquefied natural gas (LNG) value chain. In this article, a thermodynamic-analysis-based study of the minimization of the energy consumption of typical natural gas liquefaction process is performed First, a rigorous simulation of the natural gas liquefaction process is conducted. According to the simulation results, the operating states of the refrigerant and natural gas streams are revealed, along with the Operating conditions of the entire liquefaction process. Then, the energy consumption roadmap is determined through in-depth thermodynamic analysis, where the opportunities for energy consumption. minimization are identified. Based on the thermodynamic analysis, a rigorous optimization model is developed and solved for energy consumption reduction of the same natural gas liquefaction process Finally, the optimization results are examined again through rigorous simulation to check the feasibility of the obtained optimal solution.