The U.S. Department of Energy Clears Hurdles for LNG Exports

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has responded to comments on the assessment of liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports on the country’s energy, economy, and the environment, marking what it says is a “critical” step toward the resumption of issuing export orders to non-free trade agreement (FTA) countries.

Now that its Response to Comments to the 2024 LNG Export Study: Energy, Economic, and Environmental Assessment of U.S. LNG Exports has been published, DOE has removed what it describes as “final hurdles left over from the Biden administration’s reckless pause on LNG export permits,” enabling the Trump administration to fully unleash American LNG exports.

“President Trump was given a mandate to unleash American energy dominance, and that includes U.S. LNG exports,” said U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright. “The facts are clear: expanding America’s LNG exports is good for Americans and good for the world. Today, the Department of Energy is following the facts, closing the door on the Biden administration’s failed policies, and putting America’s energy future on stronger footing.”

Key Findings of the 2024 LNG Export Study

DOE believes the 2024 LNG Export Study, the comments received, and the response to comments support the proposition that exports of LNG from the country are in the best interest of the American public. With the public comments now addressed, DOE plans to proceed with issuing final orders on pending applications to export U.S.-sourced natural gas as LNG to non-FTA countries.

The 2024 LNG Study was released at the end of the Biden administration in December 2024, with a public comment period lasting until March 20, 2025. According to DOE, over 100,000 comments were received from stakeholders, including participants in the natural gas industry, industrial users, environmental organizations, think-tanks, academics, and individuals.

Primary Findings of the Study

According to the DOE, a primary finding of the Study is that the domestic natural gas supply is sufficient to meet both domestic demand and the modeled global demand for U.S. LNG in all scenarios. This encompasses sensitivity scenarios on the U.S. oil and gas supply.

Furthermore, DOE said expanding U.S. LNG exports not only increases GDP in all cases but also improves the balance of trade in the country, thanks to an increase in the quantity of U.S. products sold abroad. While the latter is not highlighted in the Study, the Department agreed with comments raised that an improved trade balance would be an important benefit of greater LNG exports.

Environmental Impacts and Benefits

As for the environmental impacts, even if the U.S. LNG exports more than triple from current levels, the cumulative increase in global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to 2050 would be no greater than 0.1%, the Department said. Since DOE cannot conclude that global emissions would necessarily increase, the GHG emissions discussed in the study are not expected to affect its public interest determination in pending or future non-FTA authorizations.

In relation to another environmental issue, the Study found that expanded U.S. LNG exports are more likely to displace fossil fuels than renewable energy resources in all modeled scenarios. Including displacement of natural gas sourced from other countries along with coal and oil, modeled displacement effects for fossil fuels are said to be larger than for resources such as wind and solar power.

Conclusion

Paired with a recent removal of the requirement for LNG exporters to meet stringent criteria before their requests to extend the commencement date of non-free trade agreement export authorizations are reviewed, this is expected to bring clarity to projects awaiting their application authorizations.

While some projects are awaiting their permits, others have already received the green light from the Trump administration, including Commonwealth LNG, Golden Pass LNG, Delfin LNG, and CP2 LNG.