January 26th, 2024

• Stay up to date on all things energy by visiting the TEA Newsroom.
• Natural Gas CARES: It is the world’s Cleanest, Affordable, Reliable Energy Source.
• NYSE pulls plan for environmentally sustainable asset class.
• Conservative Climate Caucus is trying to build its bench.
• Biden admin taking heat from all sides over LNG exports.
• Opinion: I had a job on the Keystone XL pipeline until Biden fired me to satisfy climate extremists.
• President Biden keeps pushing for more funding for EVs.
• Utilities ask customers to conserve energy, exposing more grid concerns.
• UAW officially endorses Biden.

The issue: Affordable Energy for our Families, one of TEA’s 4 pillars, should be top of mind as we enter a new year.

There are over 91 million American voters of all races, political parties, age groups, and their families who consider energy affordability to be essential to their livelihood.

Why it matters: It is clear that fossil fuels remain the engine behind economic growth, as this opinion piece illustrates. We also know that Natural Gas CARES, meaning it is the Cleanest Affordable Reliable Energy Source. That is not because of some grand Green New Deal. It is largely due to the availability of cheap natural gas, which is abundant in many regions. We have nearly a century’s worth underground.

Consider: It also is proven that natural gas heat is less expensive than electric heat:

• A U.S. household using natural gas for heating this winter can expect to pay an average of $601. Heating with electricity will cost that same household $1,063.
• That means natural gas heating will cost about 43% less than electric heat this winter.
• In fact, in all regions of the country the cost of natural gas heating is much cheaper than the cost of electric heating.

And it’s cleaner:

• The overall decline in U.S. greenhouse gas emissions was driven by an 8% reduction in emissions from power plants.
• U.S. emissions today are 17.2% below 2005 levels.

The United States consumed a record amount of natural gas in 2023 and is expected to set a new record in 2024, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

Bottom Line: Fact: natural gas is still the cheapest form of energy available, and we’ll need more of it as our economy and population grows. Policymakers would be wise to remember this in an election year.

The issue: President Biden is moving forward with a pause on LNG export approvals. Are you kidding? This isn’t policy. It’s pure political pandering to climate extremists and it’s not new behavior from Biden and his legion of green-at-any-cost advocates.

Why it matters: As this Wall Street Journal editorial clearly points out, all this would accomplish would be to hurt America’s allies and our economy at a time when both need help.

• This would only undermine our allies and world security, along with good paying American jobs.
• It threatens to further weaken our energy independence and market dominance by limiting supplies of liquefied natural gas.
• The Trump administration approved permits in seven weeks on average, but the Biden team is taking 11 months to process them.

Consider: If new U.S. LNG projects are blocked, Europe and Asia will have to import gas from elsewhere to meet their growing demand. Most won’t come from America’s friends. Yet the climate lobby says new LNG projects will lock in higher CO2 emissions for decades. They’re apparently less worried by the 305 coal-fired power plants that China has announced or has in the works.

Meanwhile, China’s CO2 emissions increased last year by twice as much as U.S. emissions declined. Blocking new LNG export projects won’t reduce global emissions one bit. But it would be a welcome gift to America’s adversaries and also show Europe that the U.S. isn’t a reliable ally.

At a time when our allies require America to have their backs, the Biden administration — with threats such as this — is more like stabbing them in the back. You factor in closing the Keystone XL pipeline right off the bat and putting more burdensome regulations on natural gas and oil producers and the result is a very anti-American energy White House.

Bottom Line: Biden LNG export pause will do 3 things: increase global coal use, strengthen Russian energy, and dampen U.S. economic growth. What it won’t do is reduce emissions, now or in the future.

Gasoline prices haven’t moved much in the past few weeks. A month ago, the national average for a gallon of unleaded gasoline was $3.12, and today the national average is $3.10. What does the future have in store? Not much, according to experts. Drivers can expect gas prices to remain relatively stable over the coming weeks, barring any sort of global supply disruption or unexpected event.

Hearing On Landfill Methane Emissions: On Wednesday, January 31, the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee will have a hearing to examine avoiding, detecting, and capturing methane emissions from landfills.

Hearing On Mining Bills: On Wednesday, January 31, the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources will have a hearing on multiple mining bills.

“If new U.S. LNG projects are blocked, Europe and Asia will have to import gas from elsewhere to meet their growing demand. Most won’t come from America’s friends. Yet the climate lobby says new LNG projects will lock in higher C02 emissions for decades. They’re apparently less worried by the 305 coal-fired power plants that China has announced or has in the works.”

-The WSJ Editorial Board opinion piece on Biden’s potential LNG export ban.