US midstream boom gathers pace

Short-term expansion is baked in, but the new decade could pose challenges

The US midstream sector is on a building spree, connecting rapidly growing oil, gas, and natural gas liquids (NGL) production to demand and export centres. Companies and analysts expect liquids and gas output in the prolific Permian, Bakken, and Marcellus/Utica shale regions to amply justify infrastructure already under construction. But they caution that the sector's growth beyond 2021 faces challenges as projects compete for financing and new volumes, and the US refining sector further adjusts to the country's light tight oil (LTO) and gas bonanza. Official projections for US oil output are consistently bullish. The Annual Energy Outlook 2019 from the government Energy Information Administ