Mexico is the United States’ largest trading partner, with about 75% of the country’s natural gas originating from the Lower 48 states. Cross-border energy trade in 2023 reached $66.5 billion, and imports of U.S. natural gas have increased for years as Mexico’s domestic production has decreased. 

With Mexico President Sheinbaum’s recent inauguration, however, the role of state-owned energy companies has been put in question. Now, with former President Trump’s re-election, NGI’s Andrew Baker, senior editor, sits down with Christopher Lenton, senior editor for Mexico and Latin America, to discuss how the cross-border energy trade may evolve. Baker and Lenton dive into the implications for Mexico’s export projects should Trump reverse the Biden administration’s LNG permit pause, as well as the outlook for natural gas demand in both Mexico and the United States as nearshoring and power generation needs evolve.

Spark Commodities CEO Tim Mendelssohn joins NGI's managing editor of LNG, Jamison Cocklin, to discuss how bearish market fundamentals have been driving down freight rates for LNG cargoes. A “massive vessel oversupply,” combined with delays in U.S. LNG export projects, has pushed freight rates well below market expectations. 

Mendelssohn explains why these rates could remain low for the foreseeable future and explores the potential implications for the LNG shipping market as new export facilities come online in the years to come.

NGI LNG editors Jamison Cocklin and Jacob Dick discuss the upcoming election and what a Harris or Trump presidency could mean for the U.S. LNG sector. They explore how either candidate may approach new export projects after a lengthy pause on authorizations that was imposed by the Biden administration. The conversation also focuses on Trump's tariff proposals and a potential trade war with China, as well as how down-ballot races could impact U.S. exports.

An "impressive" 500 million tons/year of capacity for carbon capture utilization and sequestration (CCUS) projects in the United States are on the drawing board, designed to trap emissions from natural gas and oil projects. Those ambitions, though, have been tempered by uncertainties that include permitting challenges and public opposition. NGI's Carolyn Davis, managing editor of news, discussed the status of the domestic CCUS sector with Enverus Intelligence Research's CCUS expert Graham Bain, who leads the subsurface group for the energy transition team. The supermajors – including ExxonMobil, Chevron Corp., Equinor SA and TotalEnergies SE – are bankrolling several big projects, mostly in Louisiana and Texas. As Bain explained, if all the U.S. projects now in the queue were to be sanctioned, it would require an overall investment of $73 billion, with nearly one-half poured into carbon technologies and nearly one-third into carbon dioxide pipelines. The challenges are big, but the opportunities are too, he explains.

NGI senior markets editor Jodi Shafto interviews Andy Huenefeld, managing partner at Pinebrook Energy Advisors and contributor to The Energy Buyers Guide report. Huenefeld discusses key factors for the Lower 48 winter heating season that begins on Nov. 1.

NGI’s Christopher Lenton, senior editor for Mexico & Latin America, sits down with one of the leading voices in Mexico's energy sector and the former head of Comisión Reguladora de Energía, Guillermo García Alcocer. The two discuss what could be on the horizon as Claudia Sheinbaum takes the presidential office in Mexico on Oct. 1, including potential shifts in Mexico’s energy regulatory bodies. In addition, with the Sheinbaum administration’s plans for transitioning Mexico’s electric generation mix coming to a head with rising energy demand, García Alcocer explains what could be required of both domestic natural gas supplies as well as U.S. imports. How could Mexico’s electricity, exploration and production, and LNG sectors be impacted by nearshoring? How could Mexico’s relationship with the United States be impacted as the two work to build their economies?

With natural gas prices having hovered around $2/MMBtu through much of 2024, NGI’s Pat Rau, senior vice president for Research & Analysis, delves into what may happen with producer activity moving into next year. Publicly traded producers have been on a tight leash the last five years in terms of production growth, he notes. With new LNG export capacity around the corner, however, publicly traded Lower 48 exploration and production (E&P) firms may push annual gas production above 5% year/year growth in 2025. Rau highlights other key developments at the end of 2024, particularly for Permian Basin E&Ps. 

Meanwhile, as discussions on artificial intelligence-driven data centers turned the tide on estimates for peak natural gas-fired generation earlier this year, Rau covers the latest prognostications for the emerging demand source.

From rising costs, construction delays and an increasing number of regulatory hurdles, U.S. LNG projects have seen a bevy of challenges this year, but how impactful really are the new obstacles? Baker Botts' Jason Bennett, department chair of global projects and co-chair of energy, discusses the near-term global natural gas market dynamics and domestic policies shaping the development of U.S. liquefied natural gas export capacity with NGI's Senior LNG Editor Jacob Dick. 

Despite rising complications, there is still strong demand for LNG, according to Bennett. One way or another, buyers will seek to fill LNG demand – and the U.S. natural gas market remains a strong supplier.

Susan Sakmar, a visiting law professor at the University of Houston Law Center and board member at Flex LNG Ltd., joins NGI’s LNG Managing Editor Jamison Cocklin to discuss the state of the global natural gas market as summer nears an end. 

The two review geopolitical tensions and supply security issues that are likely to factor heavily into the liquefied natural gas market this winter heating season. The conversation covers the recent court decision impacting Rio Grande and Texas LNG projects that could have far-reaching impacts for other export terminals under development. Sakmar and Cocklin also discuss some of the key events that have shaped the market in recent years, and how they are likely to influence its future.