Energy Transfer, a cornerstone of the US energy industry, recently set out its roadmap centered on major pipeline and midstream growth over the coming year. 2025 saw the company expand its pipeline portfolio in and around the prolific Permian Basin. Capital investments and earnings estimates provide information regarding a specific company’s year-ahead, and Energy Transfer is targeting an expansion of its already impressive presence in the US midstream sector.
Energy Transfer: An exemplar of the rapidly expanding US energy industry
Over the past year, the US energy industry has seen a rapid and transformational expansion, driven mostly by the Trump administration’s ambitions to transform the US into the dominant energy-rich nation on the global stage, and its efforts are producing results, to say the least.
Trump has overseen the substantial increase in the US energy sector’s output capacity since taking office for his second term. The US now dominates the international gas sector, becoming the number one producer by capacity in the world.
Recent developments in Venezuela and Iran have increased the already pioneering increase in the US’s status as the go-to energy developer on the global stage. With 2026 revealing that the US market is continuing on its world domination path, Energy Transfer has outlined its capital investment and earnings estimates for the new financial year.
Planning for a substantial year of increased midstream operations
Energy Transfer recently announced its outlook for the year ahead, aiming to bring several pipelines online over the coming 12 months. The company has outlined the growth expected, thanks to its nationwide natural gas gathering and transportation expertise.
Energy Transfer has come out to state it expects to invest between $5.0 billion and $5.5 billion in growth capital this year, with a primary focus on the company’s natural gas network in the United States.
“Energy Transfer remains focused on disciplined growth and expects to maintain its leverage target, as calculated by all three primary rating agencies, of 4.0 to 4.5 times EBITDA during this period of meaningful investment opportunities” – Energy Transfer’s 2026 Outlook
Energy Transfer now has 140,000 miles of pipeline in the US
The company has become one of the largest of its kind in the United States with an unprecedented pipeline portfolio. Its strategic network spans across 44 US States with notable assets in all of the major US basins.
With the company experiencing tremendous growth in 2025, it expects to continue on that upward trajectory in 2026. It expects to generate between $17.3 billion and $17.7 billion of consolidated Adjusted EBITDA in 2026.
With the Hugh Brinson Pipeline expected to come online this year, Energy Transfer has several other projects that are slated for commissioning in 2026, including:
- Nederland Flexport NGL expansion
- Mustang Draw I and Mustang Draw II processing plants in the Permian Basin
- NGL projects on the Lone Star Express
- NGL projects on the Gateway Pipelines
- natural gas pipeline projects serving data center facilities in Texas
“The oil and natural gas products that move through pipelines are an integral part of our modern way of life. From the clothes you wear and the food you eat to the transportation you use, oil and natural gas touch your life in thousands of ways you have never imagined.” – Energy Transfer website statement
2026: A year packed with growth opportunities for the US energy sector
Energy Transfer has provided some much-needed insight into its capital investment and earnings estimates this year with its Outlook 2026; the rest of the US oil and gas pipeline operators are anticipating an increase in capacity this year as well. The remarkable expansion of the US oil and gas sectors has become a major discussion point for the world, as the US is aiming to dominate the industry and welcomes the geopolitical power that comes with it.
