NGI’s Hub & Flow

Halfway through the summer, U.S. natural gas prices have struggled to gain momentum. NGI's team of markets reporters discuss the supply and demand factors at play in the market, and where natural gas prices may be heading into the winter and beyond.

Poten & Partners LNG industry analyst Sergio Chapa sits down with NGI’s Christopher Lenton, senior editor for Mexico & Latin America, to survey the current North American liquefied natural gas industry scene. They talk through the impacts of former Hurricane Beryl on Gulf Coast infrastructure. Chapa and Lenton also discuss the state of the Biden administration’s pause on U.S.-based LNG export projects and the implications for international competitors. Has the pause given impetus to other projects? How are Mexico LNG projects advancing in the wake of the regulatory back-and-forth?

CEO Amy Andryszak of the Interstate Natural Gas Association of America sits down with NGI's Carolyn Davis, managing editor of News, to share the opportunities and the concerns ahead for natural gas operators. Natural gas consumption is tracking higher, with industrial, commercial and residential use growing. Data centers are on the radar, as are expanded LNG exports. The question is, can natural gas pipeline capacity keep pace in light of the regulatory hurdles operators have to jump?

Join NGI's Patrick Rau, senior vice president of Research & Analysis, for his quarterly review of North American natural gas earnings calls as he discusses the possibility of EQT Corp. reversing output cuts. Other factors are expected to influence markets at the start of summer, including a slowdown in merger and acquisition approvals. Plus, the latest on data center opportunities and updates on Canada and Mexico.

Mexicans head to the polls this weekend in the biggest election in the country's history, with over 20,000 positions up for grabs and the near certainty that citizens will elect Mexico’s first female president. Claudia Sheinbaum of the establishment Morena party is the favorite against opposition candidate Xóchitl Gálvez. Each offers a distinct vision for the country's future. In this episode of Hub & Flow, NGI’s senior editor for Mexico and Latin America, Christopher Lenton, chats with natural gas expert Eduardo Prud'homme on both candidates' main policy positions. They also get into the energy deficits in Mexico, U.S.-Mexico natural gas trade, and what the country’s gas market could look like under the potential future administrations, along with a lot more.

Carson Kearl, lead analyst for Enverus Intelligence Research, discusses the projected energy usage and growth of data centers, emphasizing the role of natural gas. The conversation covers challenges and investments needed for expanding data center capacity, opportunities and obstacles for utilities, AI technologies in data centers, and collaboration for energy generation advancements.

Neil Chatterjee, a former FERC chairman and commissioner, joins NGI’s Jamison Cocklin, managing editor of LNG, to discuss the political and regulatory aspects of President Biden’s pause on authorizing new liquefied natural gas export projects.   Chatterjee, currently an environmental and energy attorney at Hogan Lovells in Washington, DC, discusses the legality of the pause, the U.S. LNG review process and the deadlock at FERC that’s slowing down projects like Venture Global LNG Inc.’s CP2 facility. 

Energy and environmental policy expert Chris Treanor, executive director of the Partnership to Address Global Emissions (PAGE), joins NGI Senior Editor of LNG Jacob Dick to recap some of the highlights from CERAWeek by S&P Global in Houston and what could be ahead for the natural gas industry during this election year. Treanor and Dick discuss the need for constructive policies around LNG and natural gas generally, in order to meet climate goals while protecting energy security for the United States and its allies. Treanor shares his reaction to comments made by Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm at the conference, as well as his thoughts on the Biden administration’s pause of LNG export approvals.

In the latest episode of NGI’s Hub & Flow, NGI Senior Markets Editor Kevin Dobbs interviews Paragon Global Markets LLC’s Steve Blair, managing director of institutional energy sales.   Blair addresses production and supplies in storage, domestic weather and LNG demand, and sets the stage for the summer ahead in natural gas markets.    Blair noted that, while prices are currently suppressed following a mild winter and record production during the heating season, natural gas output in recent weeks has come off record highs. Major producers such as Chesapeake Energy and EQT Corp. have publicly announced efforts to scale back production to align supply/demand. Forecasts, meanwhile, point to another hot summer. Longer term, LNG export facilities are poised to open soon on the Gulf Coast to meet growing global gas needs. Should demand rise in parallel with lower production, markets could rally.   Blair and Dobbs delve into the state of natural gas markets.

NGI senior editor Chris Lention interviewed Mexico energy expert Rosanety Barrios in the latest NGI podcast. Barrios is the head of the energy team for Mexican presidential candidate Xóchitl Gálvez, who remains behind in polling but is gaining ground on the establishment pick, Claudia Sheinbaum. Topics discussed included Gálvez’s plans for the energy sector, focusing on the role of natural gas. They dive into how natural gas pricing plays into energy security, as well as LNG export projects, the future of refineries and the burning of fuel oil. They discuss how Cenagas will be employed in a new government, including open access policies, the transformation of the state companies CFE and Pemex, jump-starting Mexico's natural gas production, and ultimately what Barrios would prioritize if she were to become Mexico's next Energy Minister.