Notes From The Midstream Industry Conference
My partner Henry Hoffman attended the 22nd Annual Energy Infrastructure CEO & Investor Conference in Aventura, FL last week. Below are Henry’s notes from presentations and meetings.
The mood at this year’s conference was upbeat, with natural gas demand driven by data center power requirements and the next wave of LNG projects taking center stage. Interestingly, crude oil and even crude prices were scarcely mentioned in many discussions. Below are highlights from meetings with several management teams:
Williams Companies (WMB)
WMB stood out as one of the most engaging discussions of the conference, offering unique insights into data center-driven power demand. CEO Alan Armstrong emphasized that hyperscalers (companies such as Amazon, Microsoft and Google) are seeking fast, reliable, full-scope solutions where trust and execution matter more than cost. Chad Zamarin, the incoming CEO, underscored their close, integrated work with hyperscalers.
He dismissed concerns about stranded assets from behind-the-meter power solutions, explaining that their 10-year deals are designed for flexibility, resilience, and the opportunity to scale on-site relationships. CFO John Porter highlighted the steady ramp expected in power demand, with investments that are capital-efficient, economically attractive, and not a strain on the balance sheet.
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The Williams team also expressed confidence in gas turbine supply, noting Williams’ scale as a major turbine customer across its compression and power systems. There was clear enthusiasm for permitting reform — particularly legislation that would limit legal challenges to parties with actual harm—citing the potential to significantly reduce costs and delays in infrastructure development. The bill passed by the House on Thursday included a provision allowing certain pipelines to benefit from an expedited permitting process.
WMB CFO John Porter said he’s a subscriber of our blog and is a fan. As we often tell people, once signed up and on the Friends of Simon list, there’s no getting off.
Energy Transfer (ET)
ET echoed similar enthusiasm around data center growth. Adam Arther, who heads up datacenter discussions for the company, noted that they’re actively engaged with 150 data center projects in Texas and another 150 outside the state. He outlined a clear customer preference hierarchy: (1) hyperscalers, (2) utilities, (3) legacy data center developers, and (4) speculative real estate players aiming to flip early-stage projects. ET’s differentiator, he said, is its reliability and redundancy—proven during Winter Storm Uri in 2021.
CFO Dylan also discussed progress at their Lake Charles LNG export terminal, highlighting strong commercial momentum and growing equity interest from strategic and private equity investors.
Enterprise Products (EPD) & Targa Resources (TRGP)
Both EPD and TRGP emphasized robust global demand for Natural Gas Liquids (NGLs, which include ethane, propane and butane). EPD noted that Chinese buyers are still active with volumes that have simply been rerouted to minimize tariff exposure. Ethane appears to be exempt from tariffs in practice, despite the lack of a formal declaration from China. EPD remains comfortable with its industry-leading low leverage and is signaling higher buybacks ahead. Management believes this will support a faster pace of dividend growth by retaining more cash, as equity is viewed as the company’s most expensive capital source.
TRGP CEO Matt Meloy offered a noteworthy counterpoint to concerns about a slowdown in Permian oil production. With TRGP processing 25% of Permian gas volumes, he reported ongoing volume growth on their system—suggesting the production outlook may be more resilient than bearish oil-price narratives suggest. Permian oil wells produce associated gas, and over time the mix becomes more gassy because output from gas wells declines more slowly than oil. This is why TRGP and others see gas volumes growing even with declining oil output.
NextDecade (NEXT)
NEXT remains confident in taking Final Investment Decision (FID) on Train 4 of their Rio Grande LNG export terminal by year-end, with hopes to sanction Train 5 concurrently. They report negotiations with general contractor Bechtel about a “price refresh” are on track for completion by the end of June. Given that Train 5 is nearly identical to Train 4 and located adjacent to it, pricing and execution should move quickly. Management also indicated they plan to secure FERC and DOE approvals for the remaining trains after finalizing FID on Trains 4 and 5. Last year a DC Circuit Court vacated an environmental permit which caused a delay in construction. The upside of this is that Train 5 contracting now benefits from higher pricing.
DT Midstream (DTM)
CEO David Slater reiterated his preference for working with utilities rather than pursuing behind-the-meter opportunities. Given his utility background, this traditional, lower-risk approach of helping utilities expand grid capacity is unsurprising and aligns with DTM’s overall strategy.
The conference made clear that natural gas demand—particularly from data centers and LNG—is a defining growth theme. Companies expressed confidence in NGL market strength, emphasized their differentiated value propositions, and shared optimism about meaningful permitting reform. In contrast, crude oil and pricing barely registered as topics of interest.
We have two have funds that seek to profit from this environment:
