Boehner on Russia/Ukraine - more US natural gas exports:
In Response to Russian Aggression, Key Central European Nations Plead for U.S. Natural Gas Exports
Posted by Speaker Boehner's Press Office
March 8, 2014
Press Release
WASHINGTON, DC – In response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the central European nations of Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic yesterday sent a letter to House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) urging action to export more American natural gas to counter Russian President Vladimir Putin. “Energy security is not only a day-to-day issue for millions of citizens in our region, but it is one of the most important security challenges that America’s allies face in Central and Eastern Europe today,” ambassadors from the four nations wrote.
Speaker Boehner has long called for utilizing America’s vast natural resources to loosen Russia’s grip on America’s allies in Europe. He wrote this week in the Wall Street Journal, “The U.S. has abundant supplies of natural gas, but in stark contrast to Russia, the amount of natural gas we produce and export barely scratches the surface of its potential. That's attributable in large part to the U.S. Department of Energy, which maintains an approval process that is excruciatingly slow and amounts to a de facto ban on American natural-gas exports—a situation that Mr. Putin has happily exploited to finance his geopolitical goals.”
In response to the letter, Speaker Boehner issued the following statement: "I hope President Obama will heed this call from our allies to use his 'pen and phone' to direct the Secretary of Energy to immediately approve pending natural gas export requests and do everything possible to use American energy to reduce the dependency on Russia for our friends in Europe and around the globe."
The text of the letter from the Visegrad countries can be found below. A copy was also sent to Senate Majority Leader Reid.
http://www.speaker.gov/press-release/response-russian-aggression-key-central-european-nations-plead-us-natural-gas-exports
No mention by the speaker on whether or not this would raise the cost to citizens here while increasing the profits for a select few companies.
And then there is this:
By Steve Hargreaves @hargreavesCNN June 4, 2013: 9:03 AM ET
The United States will soon start exporting more of its energy bounty. That's making oil and gas companies happy, American manufacturers nervous, and some environmentalists livid.
Last month, the Energy Department approved a second application to export natural gas, this time from a facility along the Gulf Coast partly owned by ConocoPhillips (COP, Fortune 500). The approval came two years after DOE granted the first natural gas export license to Cheniere Energy (LNG), which also has a plant on the Gulf Coast.
The two-year gap was the result of DOE waiting for studies on how gas exports would impact the economy. Would exports significantly raise prices for consumers? Would they cause manufacturers to leave, taking jobs with them? Those studies -- along with several from the private sector -- are now done. The reports all generally said exports would be a good thing.
And:
The United States is currently a net importer of natural gas, but the recent expansion in shale gas production is changing that. As the United States’ natural gas supply has grown, net imports have been on a downward trend. In 2012, for example, net imports decreased by 23 percent, reaching their lowest point since 1990. The United States is now expected to be a net exporter of natural gas by 2020.
A substantial increase in natural gas exports could have a number of effects, including increased natural gas and electricity prices, increased gross domestic product, or GDP, and increased production of natural gas through fracking. A debate is therefore unfolding about whether a dramatic rise in export volumes should be prevented or encouraged. There is growing bipartisan support for increased exports, although a vocal opposition remains.
http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/green/report/2013/11/05/78610/u-s-liquefied-natural-gas-exports/
