Caturus Plans Major Expansion of Louisiana LNG Export Project

By Charles Kennedy - Sep 15, 2026

Caturus LLC is planning a major expansion of its Commonwealth LNG export project in Louisiana, potentially nearly doubling the terminal's planned capacity as the privately held company looks to capitalize on growing demand for U.S. liquefied natural gas.

The Houston-based company said the proposed five-train expansion would add 7.75 million tonnes per annum, or Mtpa, of LNG production capacity to Commonwealth LNG in Cameron Parish. Combined with the six-train, 9.5-Mtpa base project now under construction, the expansion would lift total planned capacity to about 17.25 Mtpa.

The announcement comes just four months after Caturus took a final investment decision on the initial Commonwealth LNG development and secured $9.75 billion in financing. Construction of the base project is underway, with operations targeted to begin in 2030.

Caturus said about 8.5 Mtpa of the initial project's 9.5 Mtpa capacity has already been committed under long-term LNG supply agreements, leaving the facility largely contracted before startup.

The proposed additional capacity is targeted to enter service in the early 2030s, after the first phase begins operations. Caturus has not announced a final investment decision or financing package for the expansion.

The move adds to a broader wave of U.S. Gulf Coast LNG development aimed at serving growing international gas demand, particularly as buyers seek long-term supply contracts and greater diversification of energy sources.

Caturus said it plans to use engineering, procurement and construction experience from the first phase for the expansion, including the same modular construction approach and established supplier relationships.

The company's strategy also differs from many standalone LNG developers because it combines upstream natural gas production with liquefaction and LNG marketing. Caturus says its upstream business produces more than 1 Bcfe per day from over 280,000 net acres in Texas, providing an internal gas supply base that could support additional LNG export capacity.

The company is backed by energy investment firm Kimmeridge and has also received strategic investment from Mubadala Energy and Canada Pension Plan Investment Board.

If completed as currently proposed, the expansion would significantly increase Commonwealth LNG's role in the next generation of U.S. LNG export infrastructure and extend Caturus' growth plans beyond the startup of its initial Louisiana facility.

By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com

Chevron Targets Four Continents in New LNG Expansion Drive

By Michael Kern - Sep 14, 2026

Chevron is looking at expanding its natural gas business and opportunities in Argentina, the Mediterranean, Africa, and Australia, as it aims to offer diversified LNG supply to its customers, Freeman Shaheen, President of Global Gas at Chevron, told Reuters on Monday.

The energy crisis in the wake of the Middle East conflict that trapped LNG supply from Qatar and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has prompted buyers to seek diversification and diverse contracting structures.

“What we're seeing from this crisis is that it just reinforces the need for diversity — diversity of supply and diversity of different contracting structures,” Shaheen told Reuters.

Chevron looks to expand its portfolio from prospects in Argentina, the East Mediterranean, Australia, and Africa, the executive said in an interview with the publication.

Chevron is expanding its footprint in Argentina’s shale play Vaca Muerta, alongside other major U.S. producers. The U.S. supermajor is also building a portfolio of exploration blocks offshore Greece and Cyprus.

In Australia, Chevron operates two massive LNG projects: Gorgon, which its 15.6 million tons in capacity is the larger one—and the largest in Australia as a whole. The other, Wheatstone, can produce 8.9 million tons of liquefied natural gas annually. The two together account for about 5% of global LNG supply.

In Africa, the U.S. supermajor is also boosting exploration efforts and discovery success rates.

Last month, Chevron announced a new oil and gas condensate discovery offshore Angola, hitting more than 2,000 feet of hydrocarbons in a Block 0 exploration well that could be tied directly into the company’s existing production infrastructure in the country.

Speaking to Reuters on the sidelines of a gas conference in Thailand, Chevron’s Shaheen did not specify which opportunities the corporation would pursue.

But the major plans to raise its LNG portfolio in the coming years, with supply as diverse as from Argentina to the Mediterranean and Africa, to meet customer needs of diversified LNG supply that doesn’t not depend on one chokepoint for shipment.

 By Michael Kern for Oilprice.com

Texas Pumped Over a Quarter of All U.S. Natural Gas in 2025

By ZeroHedge - Sep 15, 2026

• Texas produced 13,603 Bcf of natural gas in 2025, nearly double the output of second-place Pennsylvania.
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• Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Ohio combined for 28% of US gas production, powered by the Marcellus and Utica shales.
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• Just four states, Texas, Pennsylvania, New Mexico and Louisiana, accounted for 61.3% of all US natural gas withdrawals last year.
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U.S. gross natural gas withdrawals reached 47.7 trillion cubic feet in 2025, with a small group of states accounting for most of the total. Much of this output comes from prolific shale formations such as the Permian, Marcellus, Haynesville, and Eagle Ford.

This map, via Visual Capitalist's Niccolo Conte, shows 2025 gross natural gas withdrawals by state and producing area using data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration, with the latest available 2024 figures used for five states.

Gross withdrawals measure total well-stream production before processing, making them different from marketed or dry natural gas output.

Texas Produced Over a Quarter of U.S. Natural Gas

Texas led the country with 13,603 Bcf of gross withdrawals in 2025, equal to 28.5% of the national total. Pennsylvania followed at 7,676 Bcf, or 16.1%, meaning the two states together accounted for nearly 45% of U.S. withdrawals.

Their output is driven by some of North America's most productive shale formations, including the Permian Basin in Texas and the Marcellus Shale in Pennsylvania.

The table below ranks every state and producing area with at least 10 Bcf of gross withdrawals. States below that threshold, which together account for roughly 0.1% of the national total, are not shown:

Rank	State or Producing Area	Gross Natural Gas Withdrawals (Bcf)	Share of US Total (%)
1	Texas	13,603.5	28.5
2	Pennsylvania	7,675.8	16.1
3	New Mexico	4,150.5	8.7
4	Louisiana	3,817.3	8.0
5	West Virginia	3,600.0	7.5
6	Alaska	3,546.1	7.4
7	Oklahoma	2,877.7	6.0
8	Ohio	2,100.7	4.4
9	Colorado	1,869.8	3.9
10	North Dakota	1,266.3	2.7
11	Wyoming	1,197.5	2.5
12	Offshore Gulf of Mexico	721.5	1.5
13	Utah	338.7	0.7
14	Arkansas	323.3	0.7
15	Kansas	122.3	0.3
16	California	113.2	0.2
17	Virginia	80.9	0.2
18	Alabama	75.8	0.2
19	Michigan	64.1	0.1
20	Kentucky	58.8	0.1
21	Montana	50.5	0.1
22	Mississippi	25.8	0.1

New Mexico and Louisiana ranked third and fourth, producing 4,151 Bcf and 3,817 Bcf, respectively. Combined with Texas and Pennsylvania, the four states generated 61.3% of U.S. gross natural gas withdrawals in 2025.

Appalachia Forms America's Second Major Gas Hub

Beyond Texas, the Appalachian Basin has become the country's other major gas-producing hub.

Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Ohio together produced 13,377 Bcf in 2025, equal to 28% of the U.S. total, largely from the Marcellus and Utica shale formations.

Alaska ranked just behind West Virginia despite having no pipeline connection to the Lower 48, underscoring the scale of its resource base.

This production base helps explain the country’s leading position in global gas markets. See how U.S. dry natural gas production ranks against other major producing countries.

By Zerohedge.com