Here Are the LNG Projects Set to Advance If Trump Lifts Freeze

President-elect Donald Trump has vowed to lift the Biden administration’s moratorium on new permits to export liquefied natural gas on his first day in office next week. The promised reversal is key for a number of US projects hanging in the balance.

The Energy Department issues export licenses to sell LNG abroad. Companies need the permits in order to sell to buyers in Europe and China and to secure financing to build multibillion dollar LNG projects that take years to complete. With Europe’s decades-long gas transit agreement expiring in Ukraine earlier this month, a supply gap in the global market has opened. It could be filled with US LNG.

In January 2024, the Biden administration temporarily suspended approvals for applications to export LNG facilities, setting off legal challenges from several states. Even if quick approvals are granted under Trump, environmental groups opposed to fossil-fuel investment would likely mount challenges to thwart or stall LNG projects. Some groups have also targeted another key permit from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, an independent agency that oversees construction of the facilities.

One company that would benefit from a speedy export-license approval is Venture Global Inc., which is poised to launch an initial public offering. Its third project in Louisiana, known as CP2, has been stalled because of the permitting pause.

Here’s a list of some of the major US LNG export projects or expansions that have not yet made a final investment decision but could advance this year under a new Trump administration: