By Mrinalika Roy
(Reuters) - Kinder Morgan (NYSE:KMI) said on Wednesday it continues to have a bullish outlook for natural gas demand banking on higher demand from liquefied natural gas (LNG) export facilities and increased exports to Mexico.
The United States was the largest exporter of LNG in 2023, with 8.6 million metric tons leaving the country's terminals in December. The U.S. Energy Information Administration expects North America's LNG export capacity to increase to 24.3 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) by end-2027, partially driven by new plants in Mexico and Canada.
"The future for U.S. natural gas is very bright. And that has positive implications both for our existing business and for our ability to expand," chief executive Kimberly Dang said during an investor call.
The comments come days after the company reported fourth-quarter results which showed weakness in its natural gas pipeline operations.
Kinder Morgan said a rise in natural gas demand has led to increased pipeline utilization, driving new projects for the company. Of its $3 billion project backlog, about $2.2 billion is associated with natural gas.
The company has the largest natural gas transmission network in the U.S. and moves about 40% of all natural gas production.
Kinder Morgan said the company is also working on a couple of projects to bring more natural gas supply into the short-supplied southeast market.