This year, the USA, Mexico and Canada welcomed the world for the FIFA World Cup. The 2026 tournament was the first World Cup since 2002 to be hosted by multiple nations (in 2002 it was held in Korea and Japan). Football stadiums from Vancouver to Houston to Mexico City saw world-class footballing action; host cities took legions of transplanted fans under their wings; and we all appreciated the star power of (choose your favourite): Mbappe, Bellingham, Haaland, Yamal, Messi, and Oyarzabal.
Away from the stadiums, the wider Americas region is also playing host to an extraordinary period of energy infrastructure investment. According to BNamericas, Latin America has more than 1200 oil and gas projects in development, planning or construction, representing almost US$650 billion of investment.1 Brazil is home to 676 projects, followed by Colombia (120), Mexico (113), Argentina (109) and Trinidad and Tobago (38). Midstream accounts for around US$250 billion across 150 projects, highlighting the central role that pipelines, LNG terminals, and gas processing infrastructure continue to play.
North America tells a similar story: continued LNG export growth, rising electricity demand and increasing natural gas production are driving discussions around the capacity of existing infrastructure and the investment needed to expand it over the coming decades. Industry forecasts suggest that substantial investment will be required over the coming decades to expand gathering systems, transmission pipelines and associated infrastructure. The projected US$1 trillion to US$1.4 trillion in midstream investment across North America is driven by growing global demand for US LNG and the unprecedented electricity needs of AI data centres.2 To meet these multi-decade requirements, midstream corporations and MLPs are forecasting an expansion of up to 70 billion ft3/d in transmission capacity.
Energy trade across the Americas is also becoming increasingly interconnected. US LNG exports to Latin America recently reached their highest level in more than three years, with Brazil emerging as the largest destination, highlighting the growing role of regional gas trade in balancing supply and demand across the continent.3
These developments are reflected throughout this special Americas issue of World Pipelines. Simon Ellis from the International Gas Union explores Latin America’s natural gas potential (p.12). Colin M. Frazier from API considers the role of pipelines in supporting energy security across the continent (p.18). David Gross and Anna Ignatova of ION Commodities, with Jay Bhatty of NatGasHub.com, explore how digital connectivity is helping operators keep pace with growing gas demand, tighter pipeline capacity, and faster-moving markets (p.25). From there, our contributors examine the technologies helping operators keep pace with growing demand, with case studies detailing projects and potential in the Permian and Bakken basins, Brazil, Texas, Virginia, Mexico, Canada, and Southern California.
Each region faces different political, regulatory and commercial realities, but the challenge of ensuring energy can move safely, efficiently and reliably is shared across the Americas. As the articles in this issue demonstrate, meeting that challenge depends upon the industry’s ability to build, maintain and optimise the infrastructure that connects supply with demand, even as demand patterns and geopolitical priorities continue to evolve.
- https://www.bnamericas.com/en/analysis/latin-americas-us600bn-oil-and-gas-project-pipeline
- https://etfdb.com/energy-infrastructure-content-hub/midstream-the-trillion-dollar-investment-opportunity/
- https://www.spglobal.com/energy/en/news-research/latest-news/lng/070326-us-lng-exports-to-latin-america-surge-to-three-year-high
