Interstate natural gas pipelines registered the fewest capacity additions last year since data collection began in 1995, per EIA.
This is partly because there were more capacity additions in single (intra-) state pipelines, requiring lower contractual, regulatory, financial and engineering hurdles. Many are near the Gulf Coast.
But it’s also due to fewer capital expenditures by oil and natural gas companies.
This should be a signal.
As long-lived infrastructure, pipelines match terms to their useful lives, typically 20-50 years and often 40 years.
Present day plus 40 years equals 2063.
👏🏽 NO ONE 👏🏽 believes fossil fuel generation will be an investible prospect post-2050.
Many jurisdictions are demanding zero-carbon power by 2040 or 2030.
This is the essence of the keep-it-in-the-ground strategy:
– Avoiding curtailed fossil infra costs getting stranded with the public
– Avoiding locked-in energy pathways leading to “fire season” stretching year-round.
