Cheniere Energy raises annual core profit outlook on strong LNG demand (updated)

Cheniere Energy

06/08/2026 11:23

Cheniere raises 2026 EBITDA forecast to $7.9 billion-$8.4 billion 
Company exported 184 LNG cargoes in Q2, up 19.4% year-on-year 
Executives say global LNG demand remains strong, record US LNG shipments to Asia in Q2
Rewrites throughout with quotes and details from earnings call
By Curtis Williams and Pranav  Mathur
Aug 6 (Reuters) - Cheniere Energy LNG.N raised its forecast for annual core profit on Thursday after beating quarterly expectations on robust LNG demand and high output, sending its shares up 3.5% in early afternoon trading.
    The largest U.S. LNG exporter expects adjusted core profit to range from $7.9 billion to $8.4 billion in 2026, compared with its prior projection of $7.25 billion to $7.75 billion.
    The Houston, Texas-based company's adjusted core profit for the second quarter was $1.8 billion, beating analyst expectations of $1.72 billion, according to data compiled by LSEG.
    "We don't see these financial results as one-off going forward once LNG prices stabilize," the company's chief financial officer, Zach Davis, said during an earnings call.
He said increased output would offset any declines in margins that have been elevated by ongoing disruptions in the Middle East. 
Cheniere said it exported 184 cargoes of LNG in the three months ended June 30, up 19.4% from a year earlier. The company expects increased exports next year as it will have a full year of production from its expansion projects, Davis said.
    Cheniere received authorization from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission in June to increase LNG production capacity at its Corpus Christi Stage 3 and CCL Midscale Trains 8 and 9 projects in Texas by around 5 million tonnes per annum combined.
    Cheniere raised the bottom of its full-year production forecast to 53 million tonnes from 52 million, keeping the top of the range at 54 million.
     
    EUROPE FACES DIFFICULT WINTER
Cheniere chief commercial officer Anatol Feygin said Europe is in a very difficult position going into winter as its natural gas storage levels remain low. Each additional month of constrained flows through the Strait of Hormuz — a result of the U.S.-Iran war — could reduce the region's storage position by approximately five percentage points, he added.  
Disruptions in the Middle East are still affecting output, but Feygin said there had not been widespread demand destruction for LNG because China's flexibility mitigated much of the supply shock, adding he did not expect China to allow its natural gas storage levels to fall to the same extent as Europe.
    U.S. LNG deliveries to Asia hit a quarterly record of 11 million metric tons in the second quarter, as exporters chased prices that were running above Europe's, Feygin said.
    Cheniere is in talks with prospective buyers and believes it can still command between $2.50 and $3 per mmBtu for liquefaction fees on new contracts, Feygin said, despite heavy competition from other U.S. LNG developers.

 (Reporting by Pranav  Mathur in Bengaluru; Editing by Vijay Kishore, Nathan Crooks and Nia Williams)
 ((Pranav.Mathur@thomsonreuters.com;))