Energy chief Granholm warns against 'unfettered exports' of liquefied natural gas
Business
Increased LNG exports also would lead to higher global greenhouse gas emissions
WASHINGTON (AP) — The United States should proceed cautiously as officials consider new natural gas export terminals, Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said Tuesday, warning the incoming Trump administration that “unfettered exports” of liquefied natural gas, or LNG, could drive up domestic prices and increase planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions.
Granholm’s statement came as the Energy Department released a long-awaited study on the environmental and economic impacts of natural gas exports, which have grown exponentially in the past decade. The analysis found that U.S. LNG shipments drive up domestic wholesale prices and frequently displace renewable energy sources such as wind and solar power.
Increased LNG exports also would lead to higher global greenhouse gas emissions, even with use of newly developed equipment to capture and store carbon emissions, the report said.
“Unfettered exports of LNG would increase wholesale domestic natural gas prices by over 30%,’' costing American households an additional $100 a year by 2050, Granholm said.
“We have recently lived through the real-world ripple effects of increased energy prices domestically and globally since the (COVID-19) pandemic, she said, adding that an “export-induced price increase” would make it harder for some families to meet basic needs.
“Today’s publication reinforces that a business-as-usual approach (to LNG exports) is neither sustainable nor advisable,″ Granholm said.
The Energy Department report comes after the Biden administration paused approvals of new LNG projects in January to study the effects LNG exports have on the planet. Natural gas emits methane, a potent greenhouse gas, when burned, leaked or released.
The oil and gas industry, along with Republican allies in Congress, have decried the LNG pause as unnecessary and counter-productive, and President-elect Donald Trumphas vowed to end the pause on his first day in office. The pause is on hold under a federal court order, but the Energy Department recently said it won’t decide on two major LNG export projects in Louisiana until the independent Federal Energy Regulatory Commission completes environmental reviews.
