Charlie Melancon: Louisianans left in the dust by LNG moratorium

Recently, the Biden administration placed a moratorium on new Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) export permits, pending analysis of environmental concerns and local impacts.

However, by doing so, the administration is placing politics over sound policy, threatening our national and economic security.

In my home state of Louisiana, this moratorium will destroy an industry that rebuilt our communities after hurricanes, helps fund our schools and law enforcement, and provides stable high-paying jobs that many of my fellow Louisianans depend on.

I was not the only Democrat disheartened by this decision as the impacts are far-reaching, on a global scale and here at home. My former colleague Sen. Mary Landrieu of Louisiana has come out in disagreement with the administration’s actions, citing the consequences this decision will have on current and future investments in our state, as well as negative impacts on our national security and the capability to achieve global climate goals.

Democrats across the nation are ringing the alarm bells – Pennsylvania Sens. Bob Casey and John Fetterman, as well as Colorado Sen. Michael Bennet, expressed concerns this decision will deeply impact their state’s manufacturing and energy jobs.

Additionally, nine democrats, including Reps. Yadira Caraveo (Colorado), Jim Costa (California), Henry Cuellar (Texas), Jared Golden (Maine), Vicente Gonzales (Texas), Rick Larsen (Washington), Mary Peltola (Alaska), Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (Washington) and Marc Veasey (Texas) reached across the aisle to pass the Unlocking our Domestic LNG Potential Act, which would reverse the administration’s decision.

I know firsthand this moratorium means the derailment of local energy investment. Given our state’s bountiful geological features and plethora of ports, the LNG export industry has created long-term economic opportunities for our local communities, notably for the New Orleans and Lake Charles areas.

All this good work may be at risk due to the administration’s moratorium, placing these critical projects on hold along with their economic benefits that our communities depend on. In fact, the LNG industry contributes $4.4 billion annually to our state’s economy, generates $178 million in tax revenue and supports over 18,000 jobs. Louisiana cannot afford to miss out on these benefits.

Like Louisianans, our European allies will bear the burden of this short-sighted moratorium. American LNG has played a critical role in maintaining our national security while protecting geopolitical interests.

Take Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as an example. They faced a very real dilemma – rely on Russian gas, find an alternative or suffer the cold consequences. Fortunately, the U.S. stepped up as an energy leader to fill supply chain gaps and stabilize the global energy market. Now, the Biden administration is walking back on their promise to supply Europe with their long-term energy needs.

American export companies have already begun to pen long-term deals with our allies, like Venture Global’s CP2 project’s 20-year contract with Germany’s Securing Energy for Europe (SEFE). Under President Biden’s moratorium, these deals set to come online as soon as 2026 are in jeopardy. If the U.S.’s credibility as a supplier comes into question, our allies will look to others to fulfill their energy gaps, creating severe national security concerns.

Although the administration sees pausing LNG export permits as a win to get the “green” vote this November, this decision does the exact opposite, driving our allies to displace clean U.S. natural gas with dirty coal.

Even in the U.S. specifically, natural gas helped to decarbonize our power grid by 60 percent through the transition from coal. However, coal use is still rising around the world with China and India leading the way.

By bolstering LNG globally, it could have the potential to displace coal throughout the world, the most practical and timely solution to tackling emissions. We are not at the point where renewables would be able to supply sufficient, dependable and affordable energy on a global scale.

Time is ticking, and we have a solution right in our very backyards.