As U.S. LNG exporters race to be the next project built on the Gulf Coast, natural gas demand is forecast to soar through the decade, causing near-term supply and infrastructure constraints throughout the market.

Speaking at the Gulf Coast Energy Forum in New Orleans, RBN Energy LLC’s David Braziel, director of fundamental analysis, said the question is where all of the gas supply required to feed the Gulf Coast’s liquefied natural gas exports will come from.

The short answer, Braziel said, is that the Permian and Eagle Ford basins and Louisiana’s Haynesville Shale will be “critically important” to meeting demand from Brownsville, TX to eastern Louisiana. However, the Haynesville’s ability to ramp-up and sustain production in the long-term still presents challenges...