Senate panel approves bill to improve FERC project reviews

The US Senate Energy and Natural Resource Committee passed Sen. Bill Cassidy’s (R-La.) bill to facilitate federal approvals for LNG export and other energy projects by increasing application review specialists’ salaries at the US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. S. 607, which Cassidy introduced on Feb. 28, now heads to the Senate floor after clearing the committee in a Sept. 25 voice vote with an amendment that Ranking Minority Member Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) offered.

A shortage of specialized engineers, scientists, and mathematicians responsible for reviewing construction applications has created a backlog of projects awaiting approval at FERC, Cassidy said.

Cassidy said that the measure would:

• Keep FERC’s LNG export facility application review process intact.
• Remove decades-old restrictions on exporting and importing natural gas that have stalled development of previous projects.
• Guarantee acceptance of export volume applications to the US Department of Energy without delay.
• Retain DOE’s management and record-keeping responsibilities.
• Potentially lower global carbon dioxide emissions as foreign nations replace higher-emitting forms of energy with regasified LNG from the US.
• Retain the administration’s ability to limit gas exports or imports during national emergencies or disasters.
• Retain the administration’s ability to restrict exports of gas to countries unfriendly to the US.
• Require the US Energy Secretary to report to Congress on current regulations that inhibit US gas market growth, and on actions the federal government could take to facilitate more US LNG exports.