President Donald Trump has ordered the restart of reviews of applications for approvals of new liquified natural gas export projects, effectively ending a nearly yearlong freeze implemented by his predecessor.
In a sweeping energy-related executive order signed Monday night aimed at “unleashing American energy,” Trump has ordered the energy secretary to restart the LNG project reviews “as expeditiously as possible.”
Chris Wright is poised to lead the Energy Department and is expected to face a Senate vote regarding his nomination later this week.
The order comes one year after former President Joe Biden’s administration first initiated a pause on new LNG export approvals to countries without free trade agreements with the United States to conduct a study on the environmental and economic impacts of LNG exports.
Many questioned the timing of the pause, as it coincided with Venture Global LNG seeking approval to build a $10 billion facility in Louisiana that would allow the U.S. to export massive quantities of LNG.
While critics blasted the pause as unconstitutional, many supporters and environmentalists said it was a way to reduce global emissions. Last summer, a federal judge in Louisiana overturned it, a decision Biden DOE officials vowed to appeal.
While the administration did approve a new export authorization application or an LNG project in August 2024, Republicans accused the administration of upholding the pause for months until the DOE released its environmental and economic impact study.
The study, released in mid-December 2024, determined that energy bills and global greenhouse gas emissions would both increase as a result of increased LNG exports. It also claimed that it could offer support to China, whose LNG demand is expected to increase.
The report stopped short of recommending banning LNG exports, indicating that exports are still, at some level, in the public’s best interests.
The U.S. has been exporting LNG since 2016 and quickly grew to be the largest exporter worldwide by 2023.
Natural gas is widely considered to be a much cleaner source of fuel than coal, as it is primarily made of methane. However, methane emissions are known for having a stronger impact on atmospheric warming, as the gas is roughly 80 times more potent than carbon dioxide. While methane has a shorter lifespan compared to carbon dioxide, climate activists have warned that it can leak and be released into the atmosphere at any stage of the production, export, and operation processes.
Key players within the oil and gas industry have praised Trump’s executive action. American Petroleum Institute President and CEO Mike Sommers said in a statement that Trump’s energy dominance agenda will boost national security and the economy.
“Directing regulators to expand access to resources, lift the LNG pause, streamline permitting processes and roll back heavy-handed vehicle mandates will help deliver a stronger, more prosperous energy future for all Americans,” Sommers said. “This is a new day for American energy, and we applaud President Trump for moving swiftly to chart a new path where U.S. oil and natural gas are embraced, not restricted.”
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American Lands Council chairman Myron Ebell lauded the president’s swift efforts to reverse many climate policies implemented by the Biden administration, such as the pause on LNG export approvals and vehicle emissions standards.
“America and the world can look forward to a brighter future because of the actions that President Trump has started on his first day in office,” Ebell said. “But it’s going to be a long, hard fight because of ferocious opposition from the forces of darkness — the climate fanatics who want to force us to use less energy and be happy about it.”