When former President Joe Biden paused the Department of Energy’s approval of new natural gas exports last January — a move received positively by environmental advocates and scorned by fossil fuel companies — the LNG industry was in the midst of a period of unbridled expansion. Sprawling export terminals had been popping up, one after another, all along the Gulf Coast in south Texas and Louisiana, with many more in various stages of planning. The consequences of the build-out on the climate and on consumers was uncertain, Biden said, echoing the concerns of advocates, and the DOE had a responsibility to understand them fully before greenlighting new exports.
“During this period, we will take a hard look at the impacts of LNG exports on energy costs, America’s energy security, and our environment,” the former president said in a statement. Though Biden’s pause on new LNG exports was celebrated by climate and environmental advocates, it only applied to DOE, not the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, or FERC, which is responsible for approving gas developments.
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