In January, as part of the Biden Administration’s climate agenda, the Department of Energy paused the approvals of pending and future LNG export projects in the US, citing the need for further reviews of the economic, energy security and environmental impacts of US LNG exports. On June 27th, energy regulators from FERC, (an independent agency within the DOE) voted to approve the Calcasieu Pass 2 LNG export facility on the Louisiana Gulf Coast. This terminal is owned by Venture Global who has secured long term contacts with the EU & Ukraine, helping them reduce their reliance on Russian Natural Gas. On July 1st, a federal judge in Louisiana issued a ruling that blocks the Biden administration’s pause on approvals for pending LNG projects, following a challenge by 16 US states. That should mean the approval process will resume, but it is unclear whether there will be further legal challenges. The US has quickly become the world’s largest exporter of LNG. The EIA reported that US LNG exports increased by 12% in 2023, and surpassed Australia and Qatar who have been the top LNG exporters for many years. The IGU’s 2024 World LNG Report highlights that as of February 2024, of… continue reading