Western States Lawmakers Call for Quicker Approval of LNG Export Applications, USA

The Center for LNG praised a bipartisan group of 16 House Members who called for an expedited review process for applications to export liquefied natural gas (LNG).

The legislators – all representing districts in the western region of the United States – sent the letter to Steven Chu, Secretary of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), where all LNG export applications must be reviewed.

Led by Reps. Cory Gardner (R-Colo.) and Jim Matheson (D-Utah), the lawmakers noted that “Creating more opportunities to sell natural gas into global markets and access overseas customers could help the goals of increasing natural gas use and smooth out historical boom-bust cycles. Realizing sustainable natural gas prices will continue to stimulate the resurgence of U.S. manufacturing, power generation, chemical and agriculture sectors, as well as continue to keep costs low to heat our homes and fuel our nation’s transportation needs.”

The Center for LNG, a trade group representing the LNG industry, agreed with the lawmakers.

“Restarting the permitting process for LNG facilities would give the United States a unique opportunity to generate more public revenues, increase investment in the U.S. economy, create new jobs, and reduce our trade deficit,” said Center for LNG president Bill Cooper. “Promoting exports is a longstanding policy in the United States, including the President’s National Export Initiative, which is designed to create jobs by doubling U.S. exports by 2015.”

Yesterday’s letter follows a similar effort from earlier this summer, when a bipartisan group of 44 House lawmakers from Texas and Louisiana also wrote to DOE to encourage an expedited review of LNG facilities, bringing the total number of House Members supporting expedited approval to 82.

“This is yet another indication that Americans are ready to get back to work. Approving LNG export facilities would be a significant source of new jobs and will help re-grow our struggling economy,” Cooper added.

Three Democrats and 13 Republicans representing the states of Arizona, California, Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming all signed the letter.

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Source: CLNG, September 25, 2012