The world has finally woken up to the magnificent blessing of American natural gas.
President Biden and the European Union leaders announced plans for new liquified natural gas (LNG) shipments to Europe to help alleviate rising energy prices.
And I have to say — it’s about time. The U.S. Energy Information Administration estimates we have approximately 98 years’ worth of gas in the United States. We should use it.
In January of 2020, well before Russia attacked Ukraine, President Trump pushed the global elite at the World Economic Forum in Davos, to do what the Biden administration is now recommending.
“We urge our friends in Europe to use America’s vast supply and achieve true energy security,” Trump said. “With an abundance of American natural gas now available, our European allies no longer have to be vulnerable to unfriendly energy suppliers either.”
If only the world had listened.
Instead, Germany and others charted a course to double down on the Nord Steam pipeline by building the Nord Stream 2 pipeline and further become bedfellows with Russia — essentially funding Putin’s grand ambitions.
Meanwhile, at home, Biden has fought to end American energy dominance claiming pledges to combat climate change.
We can all be glad that the sleeping giant is reawakening. Germany has chosen to realign their energy interests with the West and Biden is rightfully offering American support through LNG exports.
The outcome from this about-face will be better jobs here in the U.S. and a more secure future for our allies in Europe and around-the-world.
As the Biden team looks to execute on this timely and important effort, here are a few recommendations that can help them accomplish the task.
1. Start by sending a clear message to all government agencies that this is a top priority. The president’s bully pulpit is required to cut through the endless red tape, review processes and burdensome regulations that often hold up these kinds of well-intentioned efforts. The recent reversal by the democratic commissioners on the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission is a perfect example of what is needed — the proposed greenhouse-gas analysis would likely have killed certain export projects — or at least slowed them down.
2. Finance goods that are made in the U.S. and services using the Export-Import Bank’s (EXIM) unused lending capacity. EXIM is authorized to loan up-to $135 billion for the foreign purchase of U.S. goods and services. The agency currently has about $50 billion on the books and thus can provide a quick injection of capital to construct the infrastructure needed to ship, receive, and transport LNG to families across Europe.
3. Expand EXIM’s new China and Transformational Exports Program (CTEP) to include competition with Russia, and not just China. The CTEP is a bipartisan, congressionally mandated program designed to neutralize export subsidies by the People’s Republic of China. This moment calls for us to amplify our direct competition with not only China, but also Russia.
4. Use this as an opportunity to support American jobs. The American natural gas boom has created industry-leading parts suppliers, equipment manufacturers and engineering firms who have the know-how to win. In the absence of a cohesive “American option,” the Chinese will gladly provide low-quality parts, cheap labor and market-distorting financing packages. We should support companies like Air Products in Palmetto, FL, instead of Wuxi Longterm Machinery Technologies Co., Ltd, in Jiangsu, China.
5. Meet the current needs but focus on the long game. The war in Ukraine is realigning global interests. Other countries are watching and will make decisions based on the perceived outcomes from this pivotal moment. Vietnam is a good example. They began their U.S. LNG journey in November 2020 after a visit from then Development Finance Corporation CEO Adam Boehler and EXIM Chairman Kimberly Reed. Still nascent, the Vietnam energy sector requires significantly more investment to meet their baseline power estimates, and undoubtedly is paying close attention to see if America will deliver.
The coming weeks and months provide a unique opportunity to support high-quality American jobs and lay the groundwork for American energy dominance. The energy maps of the future are being redrawn as we speak.
Let’s pray that we get it right — our long-term energy and national security depend on it.
Luke J. Lindberg is the former chief of staff and chief strategy officer at the Export-Import Bank of the United States under President Trump, as well as a senior adviser to Evolution Metals and GreenMet. Follow him on Twitter: @TheUSA