Golden Pass LNG Starts First Train as ExxonMobil Adds 21 bcm of US Export Capacity

Golden Pass LNG Starts First Train as ExxonMobil Adds 21 bcm of US Export Capacity The QatarEnergy-ExxonMobil joint venture began producing from one of three LNG trains, adding supply to a domestic gas market with inventories 8% above last year. Golden Pass LNG, a 21.2 bcm per year joint project between QatarEnergy at 70% and ExxonMobil at 30%, started producing from one of three LNG trains for the first time on Monday, Montel reported. The start-up adds significant new export capacity to the US Gulf Coast.⁴ That matters because the project arrives at a moment when US gas production is near record levels and the market is debating whether domestic supply can absorb additional export pull. EIA reported that Lower 48 marketed natural gas production averaged 117.2 Bcf per day in Q1 2026, a 4% increase compared with the same period in 2025. Production is forecast to increase 3% this year, driven mainly by the Permian region at 29.2 Bcf per day, up 6% from 2025, with 10% growth forecast for next year.³ The storage data suggests room. Working gas in storage fell by 52 Bcf for the week, well below the five-year average withdrawal of 168 Bcf. Inventories are 141 Bcf higher than a year ago, about 8% above last year's level. The domestic surplus gives Golden Pass space to ramp without immediately tightening the balance.¹ Not all oil giants are prospering from the Iran war, the Economist reported. Exxon and Chevron have benefited less than their European rivals. In January, most analysts had expected ICE Brent crude to average $60 a barrel in 2025. The war changed that calculus entirely. ExxonMobil's position as a 30% partner in Golden Pass gives it exposure to the LNG price premium that the conflict has created.⁶ The Economist asked whether Big Oil can run in reverse, pivoting from transition rhetoric back to fossil fuel investment. Both BP and Shell have been back-pedalling on their embrace of green energy. BP is making investments in fossil fuels that were unthinkable two years ago. European oil company shares trade at a hefty discount against American peers in part because of their earlier pivot toward renewables.⁵ Gas-levered producers stand to benefit from the demand pull that Golden Pass creates. Comstock Resources, with 100% natural gas production, carries a Zacks consensus estimate for 2026 earnings per share indicating a 37% year-over-year surge. The estimate assumes gas holds near current levels through summer.² EIA forecasts Haynesville production to grow 6% this year and 8% next year. The Permian constraints are expected to be alleviated later this year. Each new Bcf of production that reaches Golden Pass is a Bcf that enters the international LNG market rather than domestic storage.³ What to watch is Golden Pass's ramp-up pace through Q3 and whether the second and third trains start on schedule. The 21.2 bcm annual capacity represents a significant addition to US export infrastructure at a moment when every molecule of LNG has a buyer.^4,3