Joe Biden Hits Brakes On Gas Projects Amid Surge In U.S. Exports

The president said he will "take a hard look" at how exports of liquefied natural gas impact energy costs, the environment and U.S. energy security.

President Joe Biden on Friday temporarily paused approval of new liquefied natural gas export projects, pending a thorough analysis of how shipments will impact global climate change.

The move, which follows a growing pressure campaign from climate activists, effectively freezes nearly a dozen LNG export projects currently in the pipeline, including the $10 billion Calcasieu Pass 2, or CP2, project on Louisiana’s coast. If built, CP2 would be one of the largest LNG export facilities on the planet.

In a statement announcing the decision, Biden said that the pause “sees the climate crisis for what it is: the existential threat of our time,” and allows his administration to “take a hard look at the impacts of LNG exports on energy costs, America’s energy security, and our environment.”

“While MAGA Republicans willfully deny the urgency of the climate crisis, condemning the American people to a dangerous future, my Administration will not be complacent,” he said, referring to supporters of former President Donald Trump’s “Make America Great Again” movement. “We will not cede to special interests.”

The U.S. is the largest exporter of LNG, a planet-warming fossil fuel that a recent study from Cornell University determined has a larger greenhouse gas footprint than burning coal.