U.S. Energy Department Approves LNG Export Permit Extension for Golden Pass LNG Terminal

The U.S. Energy Department on March 5 approved an liquefied natural gas export permit extension for Golden Pass LNG terminal. The approval will allow extra time to start LNG exports from the terminal, which is currently under construction in Sabine Pass, Texas.

The approval follows an executive order issued by President Donal Trump on Jan. 21, which ended the pause on new LNG export permits. Following the executive order, the Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management is required to resume consideration of pending applications to export U.S. LNG to countries with which the U.S. does not have a free trade agreement, or non-FTA countries, in accordance with the Natural Gas Act. In January 2024, the former Biden administration had announced a temporary pause on pending applications for U.S. LNG exports, in order to update the criteria used to determine whether additional export authorizations are in the public interest. The pause did not affect exports that had been authorized or the ability to supply allies in Europe, Asia, or other recipients of authorized U.S. exports.

The permit extension for the Golden Pass LNG terminal is the third LNG related approval from the department, since President Trump took office. On Feb. 14 the department announced a new export authorization for the Commonwealth LNG project. Following the approval, Commonwealth LNG is now able to export LNG to non-FTA countries from the proposed Commonwealth LNG project. On Feb. 28 the department announced an order removing barriers for the use of LNG as marine fuel to power vessels.

Golden Pass, a joint venture between QatarEnergy and ExxonMobil, is expected to start exports later this year. Once fully operational, it will be the ninth major LNG export terminal in the U.S., with a capacity of up to 2.57 billion cubic feet per day, significantly boosting the country’s LNG exports.