11.14.14

Hoeven: Approval of Freeport LNG Exports a Good Step, Streamlined Approval Process Still Needed

WASHINGTON – Senator John Hoeven today said the Department of Energy’s (DOE) announcement today that it has approved the Freeport LNG export terminal in Texas is a good step forward but streamlining the permitting process is still vitally necessary.

Hoeven, a member of the U.S. Senate Energy Committee, has introduced the LNG Certainty Act, which would require the DOE to expedite permitting of liquefied natural gas (LNG) facilities. This week, the Energy and Natural Resources Committee had planned to take up Hoeven’s legislation, but Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz contacted the senator and asked him to hold the bill so that the agency could work with the senator to craft mutually acceptable legislation.

“I appreciate Secretary Moniz reaching out to work with me to streamline the process,” Hoeven said. “This legislation will create jobs and economic opportunity for Americans and help our allies in Eastern Europe. I look forward to working with him and my colleagues on the Energy Committee to achieve these goals.”

Currently, companies apply to both Federal Energy Regulatory Agency (FERC) and DOE to receive a LNG permit. The FERC application normally takes between six months to a year to file. Hoeven’s legislation would require the DOE to make a decision within 45 days of the completion of that FERC application. Today, many permits have been pending at the DOE for more than two years.