Williams (WMB) will buy Momentum Midstream from EnCap Flatrock Midstream for up to $5.5B. The acquisition kills two birds for WMB: greater access to the emerging Western Haynesville play, and more control over supply at the Gillis hub to feed its new LNG platform.
The deal announced last Monday (Aug. 3) confirms buyout rumors that East Daley Analytics flagged several weeks ago. The buyout price includes $3.5B in cash and debt, plus $2B of Williams stock.
Momentum’s assets include 4,000 miles of pipe and 6 Bcf/d of gathering capacity across 7,000-plus wells in East Texas and Louisiana. East Daley tracks the systems’ performance, including rigs, volumes, producer counterparties and well production rates, in Energy Data Studio (see figure below).
We estimate 2027 EBITDA of $564MM for the Momentum platform. The assets plug directly into the Gillis hub, on the doorstep of growing LNG demand in southwestern Louisiana. That link is the reason to own it.
The prize for Williams is a 65% interest in the 1.75 Bcf/d New Generation Gas Gathering (NG3) pipeline running parallel to its Louisiana Energy Gateway (LEG) system into Gillis. NG3 also ties into WMB’s Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line (Transco) four miles from the LEG connection.
Layered onto Williams’ existing ArkLaTex position, the combined company becomes one of the largest gatherers feeding Transco and Gulf Coast LNG projects — where East Daley forecasts feedgas demand climbing from 19.1 Bcf/d to 36.5 Bcf/d by 2030.
Williams Building Platform to Gillis, Louisiana LNG
The deal for Momentum is part of a broader capital program by Williams to boost capacity to Gillis and assure supply to its new LNG investment.
Transco in April filed with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to build the Gillis West expansion. The project proposes to add ~115 MMcf/d of firm capacity by Nov. 1, 2026. Next, LEG’s Shelby Trough Connector will expand capacity from 750 MMcf/d to 1.5 Bcf/d by 2Q28.
The most ambitious project is Delta Access, a $1.5B expansion of Transco. Delta Access will add 2.25 Bcf/d in its initial phase planned for 1Q29. Transco was built to move Gulf Coast gas north, and WMB is now committing real capital along the same corridor to connect Haynesville production to Gulf Coast LNG demand.
The expansions are key to WMB’s downstream investment in LNG. In October 2025, Williams reached a $1.9B deal with Woodside Energy (WDS) for a 10% stake in the Louisiana LNG project (formerly Driftwood LNG). The acquisition includes an 80% stake in Driftwood Pipeline’s Line 200, a 3+ Bcf/d Lake Charles header terminating at Gillis.
East Daley has highlighted growing supply competition at Gillis as new LNG projects are sanctioned. Our ArkLaTex Basin outlook shows a tight market at the hub, and competition will intensify if additional projects like Cheniere Energy’s (LNG) Sabine Pass Stage 5 move ahead. The Momentum assets, plus the incremental Transco and LEG expansions, help WMB secure feedgas for Louisiana LNG as it participates in the broader LNG wave.
Investor Takeaway: The growth from Momentum fits inside Williams’ existing footprint and gives it more room to capitalize on LNG expansions underway. Two more expansions, Delta Access and the Shelby Trough Connector, extend the runway further out past 2028.
This is a bet on the corridor Williams has spent a year consolidating — paying off before the rest of the market catches on. – Jaxson Fryer Tickers: LNG, WDS, WMB.
Demand is Coming. Where Will the Supply Come from — and Who’s Going to Deliver?
The largest growth cycle in US energy demand is on deck, and the infrastructure required to meet it could reshape US energy markets over the next decade.
LNG infrastructure in the Lower 48 and Mexico could grow by 45 Bcf/d by 2035, while gas-fired power generation serving data centers could add another 7.6 Bcf/d of natural gas demand. More than 32 Bcf/d of major pipeline expansions and newbuild projects have already been proposed to connect growing supply with LNG, power, residential and commercial demand.
And natural gas is only part of the story.
- Midstream consolidation is accelerating as operators position themselves from wellhead to water, including Williams’ move to acquire Momentum.
- Nearly 1,200 Mb/d of Y-grade and purity product expansions are proposed out of the Permian alone, while Mont Belvieu could face more than 1,000 Mb/d of fractionation constraints by 2032.
- A possible ATEX conversion project from liquids to gas could unleash more Northeast supply and reshape NGL flows in the region.
- Permian crude oil takeaway is already running tight, with routes to Corpus Christi at 99% utilization and Cushing/Houston routes at 92%. With only about 75 Mb/d of expansions on the books, takeaway capacity could become a constraint on future Permian growth.
- Roughly $32B per year of infrastructure has been sanctioned and underwritten by long-term contracts through 2031 — representing more than $191B of committed capital over the next five years.
Where are the biggest infrastructure gaps? Which projects get built? And which companies are positioned to capture the opportunity?
Join East Daley Analytics on August 26 at 10:00 AM MT as we connect the dots across natural gas, NGLs, crude oil and capital investment to map the infrastructure buildout ahead. Click here to register now and reserve your spot.
One Market, One Model: Gain a Holistic View of North America Supply & Demand
East Daley Analytics is pleased to announce the Canada Supply & Demand report. The Canada S&D completes our North American model, providing a fully integrated supply and demand forecast for crude oil and natural gas. East Daley follows molecules from Canadian production through US infrastructure to end-markets. Clients now have a continental view to anticipate trends, from how Canadian gas is reshaping Midwest markets, to how crude imports flow to Gulf Coast refiners. The Canada S&D report and dataset is available exclusively in Energy Data Studio. Reach out to learn more about East Daley’s North American energy model.
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