Commonwealth LNG urges Biden to support pending LNG export application
HOUSTON, Jan 11 (Reuters) — U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) developer Commonwealth LNG on Thursday called on President Joe Biden to support its long-pending LNG export application.
Commonwealth LNG in a letter said it has been waiting 14 months for non-free trade approval, and has had no sign of a decision.
“With 14 months now elapsed since our FERC authorization we find ourselves with limited feedback or visibility into the DOE’s NFTA deliberation process,” wrote the company’s Chairman Paul Varello.
U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) reviews for LNG export permits have lengthened under Biden to 11 months or more, from seven weeks under former President Donald Trump, a Republican who worked to maximize U.S. energy output.
Officials from the DOE and White House have been meeting to determine whether federal regulators should factor in climate change when deciding whether a proposed gas export project meets the national interest, Politico reported on Tuesday, citing sources familiar with the discussions.
(Reporting by Curtis Williams in Houston; Editing by Leslie Adler and Deepa Babington)
Related Knowledge Center: Liquefied natural gas
Driven by plentiful natural gas produced from shale plays, the United States began exporting liquefied natural gas in 2016 when the Sabine Pass terminal in Louisiana opened and shipped its first cargo. Since then, additional capacity, or trains, have been added to Sabine Pass, and terminals have become operational in Cameron Parish, La.; Hackberry, La.; Cove Point, Md.; and Corpus Christi, Texas. The Energy Information Administration projects that U.S. LNG export capacity will reach 8.9 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) by the end of 2019, making it the third largest in the world, behind Australia and Qatar. The tariff war with China has the potential to impact some final investment decisions for additional terminals in the coming months.