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Liquefied natural gas will be energy company Shell’s top contribution to the world’s energy mix over the next decade (Reuters, subscription).

What’s going on: Shell CEO Wael Sawan “has increased Shell’s focus on natural gas to improve the company’s financial performance against its peers in Europe and the U.S. since taking over as CEO in January 2023.”

• Sawan, who has said LNG is among the most effective tools in the pursuit of lower global emissions, “expects demand for the superchilled fuel to grow 60% between now and 2040, with LNG making up about 20% of global natural gas sales by then, up from around 13% at present.”

The backdrop: Shell recently began production at its Canadian LNG plant in Kitimat, British Columbia, and is now considering investing in the second phase of the project (OilPrice.com).

• Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney included the LNG plant, “the first major LNG export facility in Canada and the first on the west coast of North America,” in a recent list of five significant “nation-building projects” he wanted expedited.
• Still, Shell’s investment decision in phase two of the British Columbia facility will depend on “when [it] is the right time to bring more capacity,” Sawan said.

Our take: “LNG is a clean, abundant and cost-effective source of energy, and Shell’s focus on it in the coming years is a commonsense move,” said NAM Director of Energy and Resources Policy Michael Davin.

• “U.S. LNG exports support hundreds of thousands of jobs, generate tens of billions of dollars in wage income and have numerous positive impacts on the communities where facilities reside.”