The US Department of Energy (DOE) issued two long-term orders authorizing liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports from two current operating LNG export projects, Cheniere Energy Inc.’s Sabine Pass in Louisiana and Corpus Christi in Texas.
The two orders allow Sabine Pass and Corpus Christi additional flexibility to export the equivalent of 0.72 Bscf/d (2.04 × 107 m3/d) of natural gas as LNG to any country with which the United States does not have a free trade agreement, including all of Europe.
While US exporters are already exporting at or near their maximum capacity, the DOE’s issuances mean that every operating US LNG export project has approval from the DOE to export its full capacity to any country where not prohibited by US law or policy.
The United States is now the top global exporter of LNG and exports are set to grow an additional 20% beyond current levels by the end of this year as additional capacity comes online. In January 2022, US LNG supplied more than half of the LNG imports into Europe for the month.
With the expected rise in LNG exports, the DOE is particularly focused on driving down methane emissions in the oil and gas sector both domestically and abroad, leveraging the deep technical expertise of the Department.
US LNG remains an important component to global energy security. The DOE remains committed to finding ways to help allies and trading partners with the energy supplies they need while continuing to work to mitigate the impact of climate change.
