((Automated translation by Reuters, please see disclaimer https://bit.ly/rtrsauto)) by Scott DiSavino
Expand Energy EXE.O, the largest U.S. natural gas producer, remains on track to increase production to about 7 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) in 2025, Chief Executive Officer Nick Dell’Osso said during the Goldman Sachs Energy, CleanTech & Utilities Conference on Tuesday.
As the weather turned bitterly cold this week and gas demand and prices increased, Mr. Dell’Osso said he had received many questions about whether Expand could increase production faster than expected.
“The answer is no. Nothing has changed for us,” Mr. Dell’Osso said. “We don’t want to grow for one season, we want to grow for something sustainable over several years
After gas prices collapsed in the first half of 2024, several US energy companies reduced their gas production. These reductions led to a decline in annual production in 2024, for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic reduced fuel demand in 2020.
“Now we can use some of the capacity that we have (deferred) into 2024… to offset the declines,” Mr. Dell’Osso said. “We can stabilize our production (at) a good level, around 7 billion cubic feet per day
Expand, which was formed from the merger of Chesapeake Energy and Southwestern Energy, said it produced about 6.75 billion cubic feet of gas equivalent in the third quarter of 2024.
Expand shares were trading around $103.30, their highest level since November 2022.
The US Energy Information Administration projects that total US gas production will reach 103.7 billion cubic feet per day in 2025, after declining to 103.2 billion cubic feet per day in 2024, compared to a record 103.8 billion cubic feet per day in 2023.
One billion cubic feet of gas can power about 5 million American homes for a day.
-After average gas prices at the US benchmark Henry Hub NG-W-HH-SNL in Louisiana collapsed to a four-year low of around $2.19 per million British thermal units (mmBtu) in 2024, energy analysts predict prices will rise to a three-year high of $3.44 in 2025.
VEHICLE/POLL
Mr. Dell’Osso said U.S. gas demand for export was on track to increase by about 5.6 billion cubic feet per day by the end of 2026, as new plants export of liquefied natural gas (LNG) will come into operation.
Plants under construction include Venture Global LNG’s Plaquemines in Louisiana, Cheniere Energy’s LNG.N Corpus Christi expansion in Texas and Exxon Mobil’s Golden Pass
XOM.N
/QatarEnergy au Texas.
The United States currently exports about 13% of the gas it produces as LNG. This percentage is expected to increase in the coming years as more export factories come online.
Mr. Dell’Osso said he wanted to sell more gas to customers at international prices, saying 15 to 20 percent of total sales would be a good target. But with only one international supply contract and plenty of gas to sell after the merger, he said it would likely be a long time before Expand’s international sales reached that level.
Related News :