NextDecade Pre-Files with FERC to Build Rio Grande LNG Train 6
NextDecade’s Rio Grande LNG is being developed on a 984-acre site along the Brownsville Ship Channel (Brownsville, Texas), approximately 3 miles east of Port Isabel. The facility currently has five trains under construction, with space at the site to double capacity. One month ago, Rio Grande LNG announced a favorable final investment decision (FID) to move forward with the construction of Train 5 (see NextDecade Announces Positive FID on Rio Grande Train 5 LNG Project). Marcellus driller EQT has contracted to buy (for resale) LNG from Train 5 (see EQT Announces Deal to *Buy* LNG from Rio Grande LNG Train 5). Yesterday, NextDecade announced it has pre-filed with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to build Train 6. Read More “NextDecade Pre-Files with FERC to Build Rio Grande LNG Train 6”
Freeport LNG has become something of a punchline for the frequent outages at the facility. Except, it’s no laughing matter. Outages at Freeport have happened so frequently that we’ve lost count. Last Thursday, one of the three LNG trains at the facility was offline again, affecting gas flows to (and from) the facility. According to a Reuters report, the gas restarted flowing to the affected train on Friday. Freeport refused to comment on this latest outage. 
Federal safety officials are investigating leaks of ethane near two small underground storage tanks at the Cove Point LNG export terminal in Maryland and have requested that they be taken out of service immediately, citing potential safety concerns. The cause of the leak appears to be related to the tanks or their piping. However, Cove Point LNG, a facility owned and operated by a Berkshire Hathaway Energy subsidiary, maintains that the 40-gallon tanks are “safe to operate under the current conditions” and that the leaks have never posed an unsafe condition for employees or the community. The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) issued a proposed safety order in mid-October, and the company has requested an informal consultation to discuss it. 
Venture Global’s Calcasieu Pass (CP) LNG export facility in Louisiana began operations in March 2022 (see 
In April, we told you that Energy Transfer’s (ET) Lake Charles LNG project had landed a new partner to help pay for the project, MidOcean Energy, which will cover 30% of the cost of building the plant (see 
The mystery may have been solved by MDN… In September 2022, the Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC) voted to extend a permit to build a special LNG export dock along the shoreline of the Delaware River in New Jersey by an extra three years (see 
Yesterday, the Pennsylvania House Environmental and Natural Resource Protection Committee (the House has a one-Democrat majority) held a hearing on a proposal by Penn America to locate a 1 Bcf/d (billion cubic feet a day) LNG natural gas export facility in the City of Chester, Delaware County. The hearing was hosted by Rep. Carol Kazeeme (D-Delaware) and was exclusively attended by Democrats who were there to bash the project. There was no “How can we make this better?” There was only, “No way, no how, go to hell.” That’s the new Democrat Party and its political “leaders.” 
The NYMEX futures price for natural gas was a rocket ship over the past two weeks. The NYMEX price closed at $4.1240/MMBtu on Friday, breaking the $4 barrier barely a month after we struggled to break the $3 barrier. In October, the NYMEX front-month contract rose an astounding 82.10 cents per MMBtu, or 25%. In one month! October was the largest one-month gain since August 2022, and the largest one-month percentage gain since February 2025. Zooming out a bit, the NYMEX price was up $1.127 or 38% over the last two months. However, spot prices (at least in the Marcellus/Utica) are more of a mixed bag. 
LNG exports continue to be an exceptional (and very hungry) customer for domestic U.S. natural gas. Over the past week, feedgas flowing to LNG facilities set a new all-time high record. We achieved a new record of 17.4 Bcf/d (billion cubic feet per day) of feedgas for LNG last Sunday, surpassing the previous record set the day before at 17.3 Bcf/d. Another record, the monthly average, is also set to fall. April 2025 is the current reigning champ for average LNG feedgas use at 16.0 Bcf/d. October is on track to surpass it, averaging 16.6 Bcf/d as of October 27 (with just a few days left in the month). 
U.S. Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas), along with Senators Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.) and Shelley Moore Capito (R-W. Va.), introduced the Natural Gas Export Expansion Act to significantly streamline the federal approval process for exporting liquefied natural gas (LNG). The legislation aims to expedite non-free trade agreement (FTA) export permits by treating them the same as FTA countries, ensuring faster approval. According to Senator Cruz, the bill will enhance American energy dominance, create jobs, and drive investment by ensuring Texas-produced gas can be sent to allies globally. 
For over 30 years, the Henry Hub in Louisiana has served as the key anchor for natural gas pricing in the contiguous United States. Its role, however, has dramatically evolved over the last decade, primarily due to the rapid growth of U.S. LNG exports. Henry Hub has shifted from being a benchmark for U.S. natural gas to the primary index for global LNG cargo pricing. Consequently, the volume of physical gas exchanged at the hub is at its highest, and Henry Hub prices are now considered a premium compared to other domestic markets. 
Venture Global is building a new LNG export facility in Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana, approximately 20 miles south of New Orleans. When fully complete, Plaquemines LNG’s nominal capacity will be 2.6 Bcf/d (3.2 Bcf/d peak). The first portion of the new plant came online in December when it officially shipped its first cargo to Germany. Venture Global said that it would (as it did with the Calcasieu Pass facility it previously built) pretend that Plaquemines LNG is not “commercially ready” while shipping all sorts of LNG cargoes around the world. The practice allows the company to cream the market and make more money for the first couple of years (see 
The front-month NYMEX natural gas futures price soared yesterday (the biggest one-day increase in more than three months), closing up +0.389 (+12.93%) at $3.397/MMBtu. Why? In a word, weather. The price jumped based on forecasts for much colder weather and higher heating demand over the next two weeks than previously expected. Also playing a role is a decline in natural gas output this month and near-record flows of gas to LNG export plants. LSEG (London Stock Exchange Group) said average gas output in the Lower 48 states fell to 106.6 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) so far in October, down from 107.4 Bcf/d in September and a record monthly high of 108.0 Bcf/d in August.