The Department of Energy is rescinding a policy implemented under former President Joe Biden that put new requirements on developers of gas export terminals seeking to extend deadlines to start shipments.
In a Tuesday filing in the Federal Register, DOE said the department’s April 2023 policy statement “does not align with policies set forth” in President Donald Trump’s “unleashing American energy” executive order.
“DOE has determined that the Policy Statement poses an undue burden by placing strict criteria on natural gas export authorization holders seeking extensions to their commencement deadlines and demanding significant time and resources from authorization holders that would be required to submit new non-[free-trade agreement] applications if unable to meet the criteria,” DOE said in the filing, set to be published Wednesday.
DOE said in the 2023 statement that it would no longer consider applications for an extension on the deadline to start exports unless an applicant could prove two things: that a permit holder had “physically commenced” construction on a facility and that “its inability to comply with the existing export commencement deadline” is due to extenuating circumstances out of its control.
