Biden-Harris Betrays Big Green, OK’s LNG Exports for New Fortress

Don’t forget the Biden-Harris administration appealed the Louisiana judge’s decision. Yet now, the administration is using the judge’s decision as an excuse to lift the ongoing “pause” on LNG exports

Biden-Harris Betrays Big Green, OK’s LNG Exports for New Fortress

CNG/LNG | ENERGY SERVICES | EXPORTING | INDUSTRYWIDE ISSUES | NEW FORTRESS ENERGY | REGULATION

September 4, 2024

In January, Joementia announced he would “pause” any approvals for new LNG export plants (currently 17 requests in the pipeline) for at least one year while his people fart around pretending to figure out how to measure global warming as a new consideration for whether or not to approve such projects (see White House Makes it Official – Biden Declares War on LNG Exports). It was a purely political move aimed at currying favor with the radical left. In March, 16 state Attorneys General filed a lawsuit asking a federal judge to end the pause, which is causing their states economic harm (see 16 States Sue Biden Admin Over Pause in LNG Export Approvals). On July 1, a federal judge in Louisiana agreed with the states and ordered Biden-Harris to resume issuing permits for new LNG export facilities (see Federal Judge Orders Biden DOE to Resume Issuing LNG Export Permits). In August, Biden-Harris appealed the judge’s decision, hoping to continue blocking new LNG approvals (see Bidenistas Appeal Court Decision, Seek to Continue LNG Approval Ban). And just like that (because it’s an election year), Biden-Harris reversed course and yesterday approved exports for an LNG project in Mexico, a project that will export U.S. molecules.

Don’t forget the Biden-Harris administration appealed the Louisiana judge’s decision. Yet now, the administration is using the judge’s decision as an excuse to lift the ongoing “pause” on LNG export approvals. Politics.

The sudden and without-warning political reversal caught the radicalized Big Green movement off guard. They are none too pleased.

New Fortress Energy said yesterday it had received authorization from the Dept. of Energy to export LNG from its offshore Altamira-based plant in Mexico to non-free trade agreement countries. According to the terms of authorization, the company can export up to 1.4 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) of LNG to non-FTA countries for a term of five years. The New Fortress facility, already built, had its first output in July.

From The Hill, which is required reading in the D.C. swamp:

The Biden administration on Tuesday granted a gas export terminal the authority to ship fuel abroad after a court blocked its efforts to delay such permissions.

The Energy Department approved shipments from a New Fortress Energy facility in Mexico to countries with which the U.S. does not have a free-trade agreement.

The gas in question is originally sourced from the U.S.; it then will be transported to Mexico and later to other countries.

The administration announced earlier this year that it would pause new approvals for liquified natural gas (LNG) exports like the one it approved on Tuesday, but that pause was halted in court in July.

Nevertheless, environmental advocates expressed disappointment in the administration, as some hoped it simply wouldn’t approve major gas projects even without a formal pause in place.

“The Department of Energy’s decision to approve the New Fortress LNG Terminal is deeply concerning,” said Allie Rosenbluth, U.S. program manager at advocacy group Oil Change International, in a written statement.

“By doing so, it has broken its own commitment to pause LNG export authorizations— a commitment made out of recognition that its current guidance doesn’t adequately consider the risks LNG exports pose to the climate, environment, and public health and safety,” Rosenbluth said.

The pause on new LNG export approvals was widely seen as an overture toward the progressive wing of the Democratic Party.

And the new export approval comes as Vice President Harris, in her presidential campaign, has shifted toward the center on other issues, including fracking.

A spokesperson for the Energy Department noted that the facility is already constructed and operational. The official added that it does not increase “the total volume of LNG” that the facility can export, but does increase exports to countries without U.S. free trade agreements by about 3 percent.

The department’s pause announced earlier this year came in conjunction with a review of its approval practices, including the extent to which factors like climate change are considered. The spokesperson said that the department is continuing to update how it evaluates these projects moving forward.

Under the new approval issued on Monday, New Fortress Energy will be allowed to export about 1.4 million tonnes per year of gas for five years.

In a statement, the chair and CEO of New Fortress Energy said that as a result of the approval, the company is “now able to freely supply cheaper and cleaner natural gas to underserved markets across the world.” (1)

The wackadoodles in Big Green are not happy with the Biden-Harris flip-flop on LNG:

Despite the strong links between liquefied natural gas and harms to public health and the planet, the U.S. Department of Energy has approved the export of the methane-heavy gas by the fossil fuel company New Fortress Energy—leading one group to warn Tuesday that such approvals will ultimately negate any renewable energy progress the U.S. makes.

New Fortress Energy said the Biden administration had authorized it to export LNG, which is fracked gas that is liquefied in order be transported, from its offshore plant near Altamira, Mexico to non-free trade agreement companies, allowing it to send nearly 1.4 million tonnes per year for five years.

The announcement comes seven months after the Biden administration announced it was pausing LNG exports to non-FTA countries, following a push from frontline communities. The move put at least 14 pending projects on hold. The U.S. had previously been the world’s largest exporter of LNG.

In July, a federal judge appointed by former Republican President Donald Trump—now the GOP’s presidential nominee—blocked President Joe Biden’s pause on the approvals of exports.

Allie Rosenbluth, U.S. program manager at Oil Change International (OCI), said the New Fortress Energy approval breaks the administration’s “own commitment to pause LNG export authorizations—a commitment made out of recognition that its current guidance doesn’t adequately consider the risks LNG exports pose to the climate, environment, and public health, and safety.”

“The Department of Energy’s decision to approve the New Fortress LNG Terminal is deeply concerning,” said Rosenbluth. “The bottom line is that methane gas production and consumption must decline immediately to meet climate goals. No matter how much the United States invests in renewable energy, any additional export infrastructure will undermine domestic and international efforts to prevent climate catastrophe.”

LNG is made predominantly of methane, which has 80 times the planet-heating potential of carbon dioxide over its first two decades in the atmosphere.

Advocates have estimated that the 14 LNG export projects that were temporarily paused by Biden could emit the same amount of greenhouse gases as 532 coal plants, contributing to premature deaths and health issues particularly for communities near LNG export terminals.

OCI denounced the approval of New Fortress’ project as “reckless.”

The LNG exports “will exacerbate the climate crisis, harm communities, create bigger barriers to a clean energy future, and become stranded assets that burden communities with toxic pollution, costly clean-ups, revenue shortfalls, and job losses,” said Rosenbluth.

Mitch Jones, managing director of policy and litigation for Food & Water Watch, said it was “ridiculous” that the Biden administration would authorize the exports despite its ongoing review of how LNG impacts the public interest.

“The department is under no obligation to approve these ill-advised proposals, now or ever,” said Jones. “As the disastrous impacts of increased fossil fuel development become more and more obvious here and around the globe, the notion of expanded LNG exports should be dismissed out of hand.” (2)

Finally, the editorial writers for the Boston Herald are not buying the Biden flip-flop on LNG:

The Biden-Harris Administration is many things, but steadfast on policy isn’t one of them.

When President Joe Biden ran in 2020, he caved to the Bernie Bros and let Sen. Bernie Sanders “Unity Task Force” influence his climate change agenda. Fossil fuels bad, pipelines must go, and green was the order of the day.

Vice President Kamala Harris was on board, until she stepped into the Democratic presidential nominee spotlight and realized she had swing states to win. Hence her about-face on fracking, (a method of extracting oil and gas from rocks by injecting a blend of water, sand and chemicals). She said this in 2019: “There’s no question I’m in favor of banning fracking,” according to The Hill.

But that was before Harris had to duke it out with Donald Trump for swing states. And Pennsylvania, a state in which fracking is a hot topic, is one such election prize.

How does she explain her big switch? “What I have seen is that we can grow and we can increase a thriving clean energy economy without banning fracking,” Harris said in a CNN interview.

If clean energy and oil production can exist side by side, then why all the fuss about pipelines and exports? Well, that policy is “evolving” too.

On Tuesday, the Biden administration granted a gas export terminal the authority to ship fuel abroad after a court blocked its efforts to delay such permissions.

Biden and Co. announced earlier this year that it would pause new approvals for liquified natural gas (LNG) exports, but that pause was halted in court in July, The Hill reported.

The gas comes from the U.S. It will be transported to Mexico and later to other countries.

The pause on the gas shipment was a win for progressives, and the reversal is not being taken well.

“The Department of Energy’s decision to approve the New Fortress LNG Terminal is deeply concerning,” said Allie Rosenbluth, U.S. program manager at advocacy group Oil Change International, in a written statement.

“By doing so, it has broken its own commitment to pause LNG export authorizations — a commitment made out of recognition that its current guidance doesn’t adequately consider the risks LNG exports pose to the climate, environment, and public health and safety,” Rosenbluth said.

The move does recognize, however, that Harris can’t be seen as a lone flip-flopping wolf. If fracking is suddenly part of a clean energy future, then Biden must bolster that stance with a nod to exports.

It’s a risky move. Will this alienate progressive voters? Or can Harris count on the furor over abortion rights to provide enough wind for her sails?

A big question for voters, especially those who view Harris’s “new” policies with approval is this: can she be trusted to stay the course should she win on Election Day? Will her newfound enthusiasm for fracking and cheaper oil and gas evaporate once Pennsylvania has decided? And will the return of gas exports continue, or be relegated to the “fossil fuels bad” pile after Inauguration Day?

Cynics have long said that voters shouldn’t take politicians at their word. In this election, however, the “word” changes as rapidly as New England weather. (3)

PLEASE don’t fall for the flip-flop lie. Should she win, Harris would immediately reverse course again and block LNG exports (ban fracking, etc.). Count on it. Biden-Harris fooled you once. Don’t let them do it again. You’re smarter than that.

(1) Washington (DC) The Hill/Rachel Frazin (Sep 3, 2024) – Biden administration approves natural gas exports after pause is halted

(2) Common Dreams/Julia Conley (Sep 3, 2024) – US DOE Approves New Fortress Energy LNG Export Despite Climate Risks

(3) Boston (MA) Herald/Editorial Staff (Sep 4, 2024) – Editorial: Biden follows Harris’s lead in fuel flip-flop