DOE Responds to Comments on Updated LNG Greenhouse Gas Report
The U.S. Department of Energy (“DOE”) has released its response to public comments on its September 19, 2019 report Life Cycle Greenhouse Gas Perspective on Exporting Liquefied Natural Gas from the United States: 2019 Update (“LCA GHG Update”). DOE’s response concludes that the “LCA GHG Update, combined with the observation that many LNG-importing nations rely heavily on fossil fuels for electric generation, suggest that exports of U.S. LNG may decrease global GHG emissions, although there is substantial uncertainty on this point. . . . Further, based on the evidence, we see no reason to conclude that U.S. LNG exports will increase global GHG emissions in a material or predictable way. Neither Sierra Club nor the other commenters opposing the LCA GHG Update have provided sufficient evidence to rebut or otherwise undermine these findings. In sum, DOE finds that the LCA GHG Update is both fundamentally sound and supports the proposition that exports of LNG from the lower-48 states will not be inconsistent with the public interest. As stated, DOE will consider each pending and future non-FTA application as required under the NGA and NEPA, based on the administrative record compiled in each individual proceeding.”