The Department of Energy has received five applications from companies that want to create terminals to ship liquefied natural gas (LNG) overseas. One application has been approved.
The natural gas industry, which is eager to sell more fuel, says overseas markets could generate billions of dollars in export earnings, improve the nation's balance of trade, and boost the economy in shale-gas areas such as Pennsylvania.
"Exports represent a good opportunity for the United States," said James J. Balaschak, a principal of Deloitte Services L.P., based in Philadelphia.
The five export facilities could ship up to 6.6 billion cubic feet of gas a day to foreign countries, about 10 percent of total current domestic U.S. consumption.
But some gas customers say exports will drive up domestic prices, mostly benefit gas producers, and undermine a chief virtue of natural gas - energy independence.
Jim Collins, a representative of the American Public Gas Association (APGA), said at a Senate committee hearing last week that allowing natural gas exports would produce "predictable and disastrous" results for household consumers.
"APGA is not against free trade, but when important policies collide, nations must make choices," said Collins, a utility official in Hamilton, Ohio. "U.S. policymakers must carefully consider and prioritize the use of domestic resources according to the national interest over both the short and long terms."
U.S. Sen. Jeff Bingaman (D., N.M.), chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, appeared to be sympathetic.
"How can we ensure that our export policy is consistent with our continued ability to reap the benefits of our newfound abundance of natural gas?" Bingaman said.
