CORRECTED-GASTECH-Chevron plots LNG growth in Europe with regasification terminal talks, executive says

By Marwa Rashad

MILAN, Sept 9 (Reuters) - U.S. oil major Chevron CVX.N is in early-stage talks to explore opportunities in European regasification terminals, as part of its strategy to expand its global presence in the liquefied natural gas market, a senior executive told Reuters.

The U.S. has become Europe's top LNG supplier since the continent sharply reduced its imports of Russian gas following Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Chevron, which is contracted to export 7 million tons per annum of LNG from the U.S. starting in 2026, has significantly ramped up its LNG trading operations. While not yet operating at the scale of Shell SHEL.L or TotalEnergies TTEF.PA, the company is a major player among global energy firms.

"We see regas as more of a national security thing for Europe," Freeman Shaheen, Chevron's president of global gas told Reuters on the sidelines of the Gastech conference in Milan.

"We are in discussions with a number of European players around regasification. We are looking at existing infrastructure and new infrastructure," he said, declining to give further details.

Europe’s pipeline gas imports from Russia have fallen sharply since 2022, and the European Commission has called for member states to end their reliance on Russian fossil fuels by 2027.

With LNG playing a growing role in the continent's energy mix, industry experts say additional regasification capacity will be essential to meet demand.

"At Chevron we want to manage all the way from molecule to customers," he said.

He highlighted the Eastern Mediterranean region as a strategic priority and said floating LNG (FLNG) is among the options being considered to support the expansion of Israel's Leviathan gas field, which supplies natural gas to Egypt and Jordan.

"Chevron's business activities in the Eastern Mediterranean help provide critical energy to millions of people in the region," he said.

Chevron has signed long-term agreements with U.S. firms, including Energy Transfer, Cheniere and Venture Global LNG.

The company is "very happy with its base portfolio" and sees long-term value in its mix of contracts, Shaheen said.

"Our diverse and global natural gas assets span Asia Pacific, Eastern Mediterranean, West Africa, the Permian and U.S. Gulf Coast. With expanding LNG capacity and strategic partnerships, we're meeting rising demand," he added.