Republican senators make second attempt at expediting small scale LNG export approval

U.S. Sens. Marco Rubio (R-FL), Bill Cassidy (R-LA) and John Kennedy (R-LA) reintroduced a bill this week that would expedite approval of small scale natural gas exports.

The Small Scale LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas) Access Act specifically pertains to those exports of 51.1 billion or less cubic feet per year. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) finalized a rule to that effect last year, but the Senate bill would codify that rule. According to its proponents, the bill would benefit consumers in markets like the Caribbean, Central America and South America, and provide long-term investment stability.

The senators also highlighted its potential for job creation in their respective states.

“This bill unleashes American natural gas potential, creating well-paying jobs with good benefits for families in Louisiana,” Cassidy, chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Subcommittee on Energy, said. “Increasing small-scale natural gas shipments creates American jobs, improves Caribbean energy security and lowers greenhouse gas emissions as nations transition to clean burning natural gas.”

Under the bill, there would be no review delays — if small enough, those exports would be immediately allowed. Those delays are often paired with the sheer expense of the permitting process, traditionally making small-scale projects non-cost affordable, according to the senators. In changing this, its proponents believe, the U.S. could rapidly tap into markets it has hitherto only brushed and provide a major economic win for the 2,462 trillion cubic feet the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) estimates as recoverable from U.S. soil.

They also see it as a weapon to use against certain other nations.

“Importantly, the bill would also ensure that bad actors, including the criminal regimes in Venezuela and Cuba, do not benefit from expedited access to American energy exports while they continue to undermine democracy and commit human rights atrocities,” Rubio said.

A similar effort was introduced in the last Congress, but though it passed out of committee, it ultimately went no further.