Sen. Ted Cruz Leads Bipartisan Letter to Department of Energy in Support of Expanding Texas LNG Exports

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) this week sent a bipartisan, bicameral letter to U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm expressing strong support for Freeport LNG’s expansion of export capacity at their liquefaction and export terminal in Brazoria County, Texas. The letter’s co-signers include Rep. Henry Cuellar, Rep. Randy Weber, Rep. Filemon Vela, and Rep. Vicente Gonzalez.

In the letter, the members state:

“The value of natural gas to the Texas and U.S. economy cannot be overstated. LNG exports have and will continue to encourage investment in U.S. natural gas production, which in turn generates billions of dollars in new investments, benefiting local communities, producing tax revenues, and creating jobs… Projects like Freeport LNG’s export capacity-increase request greatly benefit the nation and the global energy community, and we ask that you move quickly to grant such request.”

Read the full letter HERE.

BACKGROUND:

Freeport LNG Development, L.P. operates a liquefied natural gas (LNG) receiving and regasification terminal in Brazoria County, Texas. Freeport LNG began to develop the initial liquefaction project in 2010. The expansion proposal was a result of the increase in Texas and the country’s gas resources, due to the shale gas boom in recent years. The permits to export LNG from the project to free trade agreement (FTA) countries and any other non-FTA countries were granted by the Department of Energy (DOE). The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) granted its final approval for the project in July 2014.

In May 2019, Freeport LNG received FERC and DOE approvals to add a fourth liquefaction train (Train 4). The Train 4 expansion will allow for the export of an additional 5 million tons of LNG per year (mtpa), increasing the total export capability of the facility to over 20 mtpa of LNG. Train 4 could be in commercial operations as early as 2025.

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