U.S. hopes to increase LNG exports to Europe
Official says shift can reduce Russia’s dominance there
WASHINGTON — A top official in the Trump administration warned Congress on Thursday that Europe was becoming increasingly dependent on Russian supplies of natural gas as the continent shifts from coal, and the United States must increase LNG exports to counter Russian influence there.
“Due to a lack of supply routes and insufficient pipeline buildout, Europe is also becoming more, not less dependent on Russian natural gas,” Steven Winberg, assistant secretary of fossil energy said during a hearing before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. “That does not have to be the case. Our nation is endowed with vast supplies of natural gas and production is growing rapidly.”
Winberg’s testimony comes amid increasing tensions between the White House and Moscow, as U.S. intelligence agencies report renewed efforts to influence U.S. voters ahead of the midterm elections. During a visit to Moscow on Thursday to meet with Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak, U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry
said the administration was considering sanctions targeting Russia’s planned Nord Stream 2 pipeline into Germany.
He called on Russia to “stop using its resources for influence and disruption,” according to ABC News.
The Energy Department estimates that by 2040, U.S. natural gas production will reach 110 billion cubic feet per day, up more than 35 percent from 80 billion cubic feet today. LNG export facilities are being developed at a fast clip along the Gulf of Mexico, with Cheniere Energy slated to open its Corpus Christi facility later this year and Freeport LNG expected to open a facility on Quintana Island next year. Many more projects are in development.
The Trump administration, like the Obama administration before it, hopes to increase U.S. LNG exports to Europe. But the rise of LNG exports has ruffled some consumer groups and manufacturers, for whom the U.S. glut of natural gas, brought on by the shale drilling revolution, has meant decreases in fuel and energy costs.
Sen. Maria Cantwell, DWash., ranking member on the committee, said LNG exports have provided geopolitical advantages, but they also risk raising energy costs for American households and industries, as happened in Australia when LNG exports there surged.
“We cannot lose focus on protecting U.S. consumers,” she said.
Following the hearing, Industrial Energy Consumers of America, a trade group representing industrial and chemical companies, said increasing LNG exports “reduces U.S. manufacturing sector competitiveness relative to the EU manufacturing sector.”