Far-Left Judges and Biden Have Aimed to Smother Our LNG Industry, But It Will Double in Four Years!

The District of Columbia U.S. Court of Appeals is the second most important court in the nation, behind only the U.S. Supreme Court. That’s because it handles most appeals of actions by Federal agencies located in Washington, DC, including FERC. It is also a far-left dominated court and three of those judges (one appointed by Obama and two put on the court by Biden) just upended multiple FERC approvals given for proposed LNG projects. They used wholly phony ‘environmental justice’ arguments as an excuse, which tells us the judges were probably supporting the Biden ‘LNG pause’ in doing so.

Bad news? No, not really. Here, in fact, is what Utility Dive reports:

The court’s ruling likely delays Rio Grande’s construction schedule and Texas LNG’s “final investment decision” it planned to make later this year because the projects’ certificates could be invalid in six weeks if parties do not ask the panel or the full court to reconsider the decision, and construction cannot occur without them, ClearView said in a note Wednesday. The length of any delays depends on how long it takes FERC to develop a supplemental EIS — a process that typically takes at least six months — and how any further appeals play out, the research firm said.

NextDecade is building three liquefaction units, referred to as trains, at its Rio Grande project for about $18.4 billion. On Monday, NextDecade signed a lump sum turnkey engineering, procurement and construction contract with Bechtel Energy for a roughly $6.1 billion fourth train. 

NextDecade is reviewing the court’s decision and assessing its options, the Houston-based company said Tuesday. It is continuing to build the project’s first three liquefaction trains and is evaluating how the decision could affect the timing of a final investment decision on Train 4, NextDecade said.

Texas LNG is studying the court’s opinion, “which is a procedural decision to correct a technical deficiency,” a company spokesman said in an email. “We have full confidence FERC will address this matter judiciously and efficiently.”

Texas LNG aims to resolve the issue “quickly and completely” to continue moving toward a “financial investment decision” and construction in the near term, the spokesman said.

So, the court decision is expected to delay things a bit, but the projects are already well along in a practical sense. What the far-left judges have done is merely to add some costs and time to the projects for the sake of virtue signaling. The reality is that LNG is on a tear as this material from Today In Energy indicates:

North America’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) export capacity is on track to more than double between 2024 and 2028, from 11.4 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) in 2023 to 24.4 Bcf/d in 2028, if projects currently under construction begin operations as planned. During this time, we expect developers in Mexico and Canada to place their first LNG export terminals into service and in the United States to add to existing LNG capacity. By the end of 2028, we estimate LNG export capacity will grow by 0.8 Bcf/d in Mexico, 2.5 Bcf/d in Canada, and 9.7 Bcf/d in the United States from a total of 10 new projects that are currently under construction in the three countries:

Mexico. Developers are currently constructing two projects with a combined LNG export capacity of 0.6 Bcf/d—Fast LNG Altamira offshore on Mexico's east coast and Energía Costa Azul on Mexico's west coast.

• Fast LNG Altamira consists of two Floating LNG production units (FLNG), each with a capacity to liquefy up to 0.199 Bcf/d of natural gas, located off the coast of Altamira, in the state of Tamaulipas, Mexico. Natural gas from the United States delivered via the Sur de Texas-Tuxpan pipeline will supply these units. The first LNG cargo from this facility was shipped in August 2024.

• The Energía Costa Azul LNG export terminal (0.4 Bcf/d export capacity) is located at the site of the existing LNG regasification (import) terminal in Baja California in western Mexico. Developers proposed an expansion of this project in Phase 2 by 1.6 Bcf/d. This project will be supplied with natural gas from the Permian Basin in the United States.

Developers have proposed other LNG export projects, all for Mexico’s west coast, including Saguaro Energia LNG (2.0 Bcf/d capacity), Amigo LNG (1.0 Bcf/d capacity), Gato Negro LNG (0.6 Bcf/d capacity), Salina Cruz LNG (0.4 Bcf/d capacity), and Vista Pacifico LNG (0.5 Bcf/d capacity), with a combined capacity of 4.5 Bcf/d; however, none of these projects have reached a final investment decision or started construction.

Canada. Currently, three LNG export projects with a combined capacity of 2.5 Bcf/d are under construction in British Columbia on Canada’s west coast. Developers of LNG Canada (1.8 Bcf/d export capacity) plan to start LNG exports from Train 1 in the summer of 2025. Woodfibre LNG (export capacity 0.3 Bcf/d) targets the startup of LNG exports in 2027. Cedar LNG—an FLNG project with capacity to liquefy up to 0.4 Bcf/d—made a final investment decision in June 2024 and expects to start LNG exports in 2028. These projects will be supplied with natural gas from western Canada.

In addition, the Canada Energy Regulator (CER) has authorized four LNG export projects, including an expansion of LNG Canada, with a combined proposed LNG export capacity of 4.1 Bcf/d.

United States. Five LNG export projects are currently under construction with a combined export capacity of 9.7 Bcf/d—Plaquemines (Phase I and Phase II), Corpus Christi Stage III, Golden Pass, Rio Grande (Phase I), and Port Arthur (Phase I). Developers expect to produce the first LNG from Plaquemines LNG and Corpus Christi LNG Stage III and ship first cargoes from these projects by the end of 2024.

Yes, LNG is so alive and well it is expected to more than double in just four years!

#LNG #Courts #FERC #Biden-Harris #EnvironmentalJustice #DCcourtofappeals