The Coming Golden Age of LNG Under Donald J. Trump
Rystad Energy, based in Norway, is an independent energy research and business intelligence company providing data, analytics, and consultancy services to clients exposed to the energy industry across the globe. In an article published by OilPrice.com, Rystad analysts make this bold claim: “Triggered by incoming US President Donald Trump, the next four years could prime the liquefied natural gas (LNG) markets for a golden era.” Look for the Trump administration to “accelerate US LNG infrastructure expansion through deregulation and faster permitting, bolstering global supply.” After years of uncertainty about U.S. LNG thanks to a dithering President Biden, someone with demonstrable cognitive decline, LNG is “back” under Trump, and global markets are delighted. Read More “The Coming Golden Age of LNG Under Donald J. Trump”
NATIONAL: America needs Trump to unleash natural gas; INTERNATIONAL: OPEC output rises as Libya recovery offsets Iraqi curbs; Analysts examine 2025 oil, gas markets. 
For the week of Nov 18 – 24, permits issued in the Marcellus/Utica continued to be strong, with 28 new permits issued, down just two from the 30 issued the prior week. The Keystone State (PA) issued 11 new permits, with five going to CNX Resources, all in Allegheny County. Two permits were issued to Southwestern Energy (now Expand Energy) in Lycoming County. The remaining four were single permits issued to EQT Corporation (Greene County), Infinity Natural Resources (Indiana County), Range Resources (Washington County), and Apex Energy (Westmoreland County). 
The Baker Hughes national rig count dropped another rig last week and now sits at 582. The national count continues to be rangebound between 581 and 589 since June. Slicing the national count slightly differently—by oil-focused vs. gas-focused rigs—oil rigs fell by two to 477 last week, their lowest since July, while gas rigs rose by one to 100. Last week, all three Marcellus/Utica states maintained the same count for the third week in a row, with PA operating 15 active rigs and Ohio and West Virginia operating 10 rigs each, for a combined 35 rigs. That’s the third week in a row the M-U has operated 35 rigs. It feels like the doom and gloom is finally starting to lift. 
In early October, Infinity Natural Resources (INR), with 90,000 acres in the Marcellus/Utica, filed an IPO with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), hoping to raise $100 million (see 
As we’ve stated many times, we’re not fans of so-called “net zero.” Net zero emissions refer to balancing the amount of greenhouse gases (GHG) emitted into the atmosphere with an equivalent amount of GHG removed, resulting in no net increase in atmospheric GHG concentrations. Scope 1 and 2 emissions are part of the broader framework defined by the Greenhouse Gas Protocol, which divides emissions into three categories (Scopes 1, 2, and 3) based on their source. We told you in October that EQT Corporation had achieved net zero for Scopes 1 and 2 about a year earlier than expected (see 
The volume of natural gas flowing to U.S. LNG export facilities on Friday was on track to hit 14.6 billion cubic feet (Bcf), just shy of the all-time high of 14.7 Bcf recorded one year ago, in December 2023. The reason for the near-record high is that all LNG export facilities, including the up down up down up down Freeport LNG facility, were firing on all cylinders. Two weeks ago, one of Freeport’s three trains tripped off (see 
It’s funny how Big Tech companies like Microsoft, Google, Apple, Amazon, and others—all of them virtue-signalers—are willing to dump their virtue signaling (dump their insistence on using “green” energy) when it begins to affect the bottom line. We’re seeing it now with AI (artificial intelligence) and data centers. Big Tech needs power to run AI, and it needs it NOW (over the next several years). Big Tech is coming to the realization that hillsides full of ugly solar panels and windmills are not the solution but the problem. Solar and wind energy are intermittent (i.e., unreliable), and the existing power grid is about at maximum right now. So what is Big Tech now doing after trashing fossil energy for most of the last decade? Big Tech is looking at gas-fired power plants once again as the solution to meet their power needs. Welcome back to sanity and reality, Big Tech. 
You’ve heard of the Holy Trinity, right? Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The three largest LNG exporting countries in the world, the U.S. (#1), Australia (#2), and Qatar (#3), are referred to as the LNG Trinity. Together, all three countries represent roughly 60% of all LNG exported on the planet. However, each country has its own strategy, politics, and approach to the market. How are they similar, and how are they different? 
MDN is taking both Thanksgiving Thursday and Black Friday off. While you’re taking time to be thankful for your friends, family, food, drinks, and other luxuries, take a moment to say THANK YOU to the resources that make this holiday so wonderful: fossil fuels! Below is a video from our friends at Clear Energy Alliance. Watch it (under 4 minutes) to learn just how much oil, natural gas, and coal bring to the table during the holiday season — and every other day of the year.
We don’t begin to get excited about the price of natural gas unless and until it’s above $3/MMBtu and it stays there for a while. We’re there. Yesterday, the “front month” contract for NYMEX Henry Hub natural gas closed up 6.2 cents (1.8%) at $3.43/MMBtu. Over the past two days, the price closed up 30.2 cents (9.65%). Yesterday’s closing price was a 52-week high. Finally. Why the dramatic increase? Weather. 
In October, MDN told you about a Congressional investigation looking into the Department of Energy’s use of a prematurely released “study” as an excuse to “pause” (i.e., ban) new LNG export approvals (see 
In the spirit of doing the maximum amount of damage to the fossil fuel industry before being pried out of their cushy offices in the D.C. swamp, the Biden EPA last week proposed yet another onerous new regulation aimed at strangling natural gas-fired power plants. This latest attack ups the limits on emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOx) from most new, modified, and reconstructed gas-fired power plants. It’s a safe bet that the incoming Trump EPA administrator, Lee Zeldin, will withdraw the proposed regulation before it can be implemented. So, at least there’s that. However, the new reg comes from a “sue-and-settle” court case with the odious Sierra Club in 2022 that requires a new reg to be in place by Nov. 2025.