LNG Growth and Rising Demand Reshape Natural Gas Infrastructure Priorities
(P&GJ) — Pipeline & Gas Journal (PGJ) had the opportunity to speak with Shawn Patterson (SP), Chair of the SGA Natural Gas Association, to discuss the organization’s 2026 priorities and the evolving role of natural gas in a rapidly changing energy landscape. As demand growth continues—driven by liquified natural gas (LNG) expansion, data center development and reliability pressures—the conversation explores how the SGA is guiding the industry through infrastructure challenges, workforce development and operational innovation.
PGJ: How did you get into the business, and what made you want to make natural gas your career?
SP: I did not grow up thinking I would spend my career in natural gas, but I did grow up with a strong interest in how things work: large systems, engineering and the teams it takes to operate them safely and reliably. Early on, I knew I wanted to be an engineer that worked outdoors. I was drawn to industries where the work was tangible, made a difference and where performance truly mattered every day.
When I entered the natural gas business in 1995, what immediately stood out was the mission critical nature of the work. This industry does not get days off. People depend on the system for heat, hot water, cooking, power generation, manufacturing and, increasingly, for data centers and global LNG supply. You quickly realize that reliability is not a talking point: it is a responsibility. It is a meaningful way to serve communities and people.
What made me want to stay, and ultimately build a career here, was the combination of infrastructure upgrades, leadership development opportunities and the people. Natural gas infrastructure is complex, capital-intensive and unforgiving of complacency. At the same time, success depends on strong teams, disciplined operations and a culture that prioritizes safety and accountability. That intersection of engineering rigor, making a difference though infrastructure upgrades, and strong leadership really resonated with me.
At its core, I chose natural gas because it is an industry where what you do today directly affects communities tomorrow, and that is a responsibility I have never taken lightly.
PGJ: The International Energy Agency (IEA) predicts that global gas demand will accelerate in 2026, driven largely by LNG and emerging markets. How is this global shift impacting the U.S. Gulf Coast?
SP: The Gulf Coast is increasingly the load center of global LNG, not just for exports, but for the upstream and midstream decisions that feed those terminals. The IEA is clear that the next leg of demand growth in 2026 is tied to a surge of LNG supply and a rebound in price sensitive markets, especially in Asia and emerging economies.
What that means for the Gulf Coast is a step-change in throughput expectations: more feed gas moving south, more compression and interconnect activity, and more focus on operational excellence because LNG does not tolerate variability. At the same time, the U.S. is central to this LNG wave, and North America will be the dominant contributor to incremental supply in 2026.
PGJ: What are the top priorities for SGA this year, and how have these changed in the past few years?
SP: Our 2026 Chair theme is Natural Gas Now built around three pillars: Share, Grow, Advance.
- Share means we are expanding how we exchange real-world practices: what is working in integrity management, safety leadership, control room readiness and emissions performance, along with helping members communicate the facts about how natural gas delivers reliability, affordability and energy security.
- Grow is about meeting the urgency for pipeline infrastructure investments in parallel with the modernization and expansion of workforce capability. Aging assets and rising demand require both capacity and competence.
- Advance is our push on data, predictive analytics, smarter infrastructure and operational technology that improves safety and performance.
As for how this has changed in recent years, much of the conversation was previously framed around the energy transition. Today, it is much more clearly an “energy addition” under reliability pressure: LNG growth, electrification impacts, extreme weather and now data center load. That shift is exactly why the theme is Natural Gas Now—because the demands are immediate.
PGJ: Do you anticipate bottlenecks in transmission, storage or distribution as LNG and power demand increase?
SP: I think it is less about a single chokepoint and more about synchronization risks, such as LNG terminal in-service dates, upstream supply growth, pipeline expansions and downstream power needs that do not always ramp on the same timeline.
We have already seen analysts and data sources highlight that pipeline build timing is a critical dependency for new LNG supply, especially into the Gulf Coast. The EIA notes that supplying these terminals requires new pipeline projects and warns that construction delays remain a supply risk.
On top of that, industry outlooks point to feedgas and takeaway constraints in key basins, like the Permian, which needs additional capacity to reach the Gulf and relieve pricing dislocations—that timing matters.
From an SGA perspective, the way we manage bottlenecks is by raising execution readiness: better coordination, better data and best-practice sharing so we can maintain high readiness even as utilization rises.
PGJ: Data center expansion (especially tied to AI) has emerged as a major new source of power demand. Are utilities in the Southeast U.S. planning new gas-fired generation to support this growth?
SP: Yes, utilities are clearly planning around it, and in some cases, accelerating plans. This is not a unique challenge in the Southeast. In the Midcontinent and across the U.S., power generators are working with natural gas companies to find rapidly deployable solutions with long-term dependability.
That said, gas buildouts are increasingly being evaluated alongside pipeline constraints, siting timelines and complementary tools like demand response and interim grid-scale storage. The winners will be regions that can sequence these investments realistically, matching data center load growth with infrastructure that can actually be delivered on schedule.
My takeaway is that utilities are acting because time-to-power is real, and gas is one of the most dispatchable tools available to meet near-term reliability requirements.
PGJ: Are your members seeing increased demand for high-load reliability services tied to hyperscale developments?
SP: Absolutely. Hyperscale customers do not just want molecules or megawatts, they want performance guarantees: firm service, redundancy, fast restoration capability and tighter coordination across gas and electric operations.
Across the market, you are seeing utilities and infrastructure providers respond with special tariffs, long-term commitments and capacity agreements tailored to hyperscale needs, often with requirements around flexibility or onsite support during grid stress.
So, for SGA members, high-load reliability services translates into very practical work:
- Stronger interconnect engineering and pressure management
- Enhanced system monitoring and control-room readiness
- Closer coordination with power generators and large-load customers
- Operational discipline that supports high utilization without sacrificing safety.
PGJ: What training initiatives is SGA prioritizing to prepare the next generation of gas professionals?
SP: Workforce is a core priority because none of this buildout matters if we do not have prepared people to design, operate and maintain it.
SGA’s mission is explicitly centered on industry-specific training and leadership skills across the natural gas value chain, and we operate as a convening and training hub for the sectors we serve.
In 2026, aligned with Share, Grow, Advance, our emphasis is on:
- Leadership grounding and industry context: Helping emerging leaders communicate clearly about reliability, affordability and safety in a fast-changing environment.
- Operational excellence and modern tools: Training that reflects today’s systems: integrity management, risk-based decision-making, data-enabled operations and continuous improvement.
- Peer-driven learning through committees and programs: The fastest way to improve performance is to spread what works across operators. SGA’s committee structure is built for exactly that.
- Our commitment is simple: make sure the next generation is competent, confident and ready, not only to run the system, but to lead it.
About the interviewee
SHAWN L. PATTERSON began at Southern Star in 2017 as Chief Operations Officers and became President and Chief Executive Officer in 2022. Prior to joining Southern Star, Patterson was the Senior Vice President of Operations at TransCanada Pipeline USA Ltd. He also held the roles of Chief Operating Officer and Executive Vice President at Columbia Pipeline Group, Inc., Chief Operating Officer for NiSource Distribution Companies, and Executive Vice President Engineering for NiSource Distribution Companies.
Patterson began his career in the industry in 1995 with a passion for building strong teams, safety culture, growth platforms and optimizing organizations’ capabilities. He has been recognized by industry associates for his innovative approach to business solutions. Patterson earned his BS degree from Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology and an MBA from the University of Notre Dame. He serves on the board of the Regional Water Resource Agency (Wastewater Services for Owensboro and Daviess County, Kentucky). Patterson is a Board of Trustee member for Brescia University, 2026 Board Chair for the Greater Owensboro Chamber of Commerce and 2026 Board Chair of the SGA Natural Gas Association.