LNG TERMINAL APPROVED FOR TEXAS Back to Blog
The Dept. of Energy approved Freeport LNG’s expansion application to export up to 1.4 billion cubic feet of liquefied natural gas per day from its terminal near Freeport, Texas. The Energy Department said that granting the permit will allow for the shipment to countries that do not currently have a free-trade agreement with the U.S. Freeport is owned by ConocoPhillips and is the second export project to be approved. The first was the Sabine Pass LNG Terminal in Cameron Parish, LA. If all 20 applications , made by various energy companies to the DOE are ultimately approved, a significant 29 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day would be available for foreign shipment. The resulting export boom would lead to commodity price increases for the natural gas industry, something environmental groups and certain gas consumers are reluctant to support. Typically, environmental groups support the move from oil sources of fuel to natural gas, but lately they seem more concerned about any increase in the level of hydraulic fracturing. The expected increase in natural gas prices is expected to resurrect the Barnett Shale play of North Texas.