Sempra advances in Gulf Coast and Mexican LNG projects amid gas and power challenges

Sempra , the US utility company with power and natural gas services centred on California and Texas and LNG developments in the US and Mexico through the Sempra Infrastructure subsidiary, reported a 25 percent drop in first-quarter profits as commodity prices fell along with revenues.

The San Diego, California-based company posted first-quarter 2024 net profits of $881 million, a sharp decline from the $1.17 billion posted in the same three months of 2023.

Quarterly revenues plunged to $3.64 billion from $6.56Bln in the same quarter of 2023 as income from natural gas more the halved to $2.11Bln from $4.41Bln in the prior-year quarter.

LNG progress

Sempra, which operates the Cameron LNG export plant in Louisiana and whose other projects include the Port Arthur LNG joint venture in Texas and the Costa Azul LNG venture on the Pacific Coast of Mexico, gave a positive update on the various ventures.

“Construction of Energía Costa Azul LNG Phase 1 and Port Arthur LNG Phase 1 remain on schedule,” said Sempra.

“Energía Costa Azul LNG Phase 1 construction is now over 80 percent complete and remains on track to commence commercial operations in summer 2025,” the company added.

Sempra stated that earnings per share dropped to $1.26 per share from $1.53 per share.

“We are seeing strong economic growth in our core markets with increased interest in renewables, electric vehicles, digital infrastructure and the continued electrification of the economy,” explained Jeffrey W. Martin, Chairman and Chief Executive of Sempra.

“Our infrastructure-centered strategy has us well positioned to continue modernizing and expanding the energy grid to help meet the needs of our customers,” Martin added.

Sempra’s California utility businesses are San Diego Gas & Electric Co. (SDGE) and Southern California Gas Co. (SoCalGas).

Natural Gas blending

The company noted that in March 2024, Sempra California joined its peers in filing an application with the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) to develop a series of projects to demonstrate hydrogen blending in the natural gas system.

“Hydrogen blending has been identified by California as a key component of its efforts to achieve the state's decarbonization goals,” Sempra said.

“This application is an important step toward development of a state-wide standard for hydrogen blending with a view toward accelerating the expansion of a cleaner, more resilient grid,” the company claimed.

Sempra said that San Diego Gas & Electric Co. recently celebrated the installation of charging infrastructure for electric vehicles.