*

Potential deal could boost Taiwan's political leverage

with US

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Looks to tap into US LNG expansion

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CPC explored possible bids for private equity-backed

assets,

sources say

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These include Haynesville shale field

By Georgina McCartney and Shariq Khan

HOUSTON, July 11 (Reuters) - Taiwan's state-owned energy

company CPC Corp is in early stage discussions to buy shale-gas

producing assets in the United States, three sources familiar

with the matter said, in a bid to secure natural gas supplies to

fuel Taiwan's economy.

If a deal is struck, CPC would join a growing list of Asian

companies taking ownership of U.S. natural gas assets, gaining

exposure to the commodity at a time that the United States is

expanding its export capacity by building more liquefied natural

gas plants.

Taiwan would also be gaining political leverage with the

Trump administration, which has linked increasing imports of

U.S. energy with tariff policy.

CPC explored in recent months bids for assets held by public

and private equity-backed gas producers active in shale

formations that are well connected to existing or upcoming LNG

plants, such as the Haynesville shale field of east Texas and

Louisiana, the sources said.

It has also considered bids for assets in mature plays like

the Marcellus in the Appalachian Basin, which have attracted

more buyer interest in recent years as technological

advancements have allowed operators to extract more hydrocarbons

at lower drilling costs, the sources added.

CPC did not respond to a request for comment.

The sources cautioned that any deal was not guaranteed, and

CPC could still buy assets somewhere else. They requested

anonymity to discuss confidential deliberations.

Taiwan's LNG imports have been rising steadily over the last

15 years, according to data from ship tracker Kpler, hitting a

record 21.78 million metric tons in 2024.

SECURING ENERGY SECURITY

Some Asian companies, including CPC, have already bought

stakes in various U.S. LNG plants. Ownership in gas producing

assets can be a way for them to secure supply of the fuel to

these plants.

In March, the Taiwanese company signed an agreement with

Alaska Gasline Development Corp to buy LNG and invest in the

Alaska LNG project which will transport gas south from Alaska's

remote north via pipeline, to be shipped as LNG to Taiwan, Japan

and South Korea. Taiwan's President Lai Ching-te said this would

ensure the island's energy security.

CPC has also expressed interest in acquiring parts of

private equity-backed Aethon Energy Management's Haynesville

assets, one of the sources said. Aethon is currently in talks to

sell the entire company to Japanese conglomerate Mitsubishi

Corp, although a deal is not guaranteed, sources said.

Aethon declined to comment.

The Haynesville produces around 15.4 billion cubic feet per

day (bcfd), according to the latest data from the U.S. Energy

Information Administration, making it the third-largest gas

producing region in the country, and an attractive option to

foreign buyers and investment firms.

The Appalachian Basin, meanwhile, is the largest

gas-producing region in the U.S., with output of 36.4 bcfd,

according to the EIA.

(Reporting by Georgina McCartney in Houston and Shariq Khan in

New York; Editing by Liz Hampton and Emelia Sithole-Matarise)