Whether you’re heating your home, gassing up (or recharging) your car, or even getting a new tattoo, oil and natural gas drive our economy.
In Colorado, the nation’s #7 energy producer, the oil and gas (O&G) industry supports over 300,000 Colorado jobs — 7.7% of total employment — and contributed over $48 billion to Colorado’s economy in 2021, according to the American Petroleum Institute.
So, when the Biden administration announced last week that it was “pausing” the approval process for new and pending permits for export terminals of liquefied natural gas (LNG), where were Democratic Sens. Michael Bennet and John Hickenlooper?
The Department of Energy’s review of LNG export projects will grind on for months, already halting four crucial projects in the application pipeline. Biden claims they’ll examine energy costs, America’s energy security and environmental impacts of LNG exports — supposedly to combat climate change.
LNG is a form of natural gas that is cooled to -259 degrees Fahrenheit, removing various compounds to produce a liquefied gas (mostly methane). It’s lightweight and easy to contain and transport across the world.
Here’s the thing: As fossil fuels go, LNG is remarkably clean. It produces 45-50% less carbon dioxide than coal and 30% less than oil — helping drive down America’s emissions even as production has climbed.
Natural gas is crucial for us and our allies, bolstering renewables during energy shortfalls. It’s an ideal energy source for exporting to developing countries, which can deploy it far more efficiently and cost-effectively than wind turbines or solar farms
The science isn’t on Biden’s side here — which is why he’s had to diverge from past practices. As the Cato Institute’s Travis Fisher detailed, DOE has never before denied an LNG export application. The default was always approval.
Last July, DOE rejected an environmental coalition’s petition for a blanket review of its policy, citing “individual adjudications and export-focused regulatory actions” as sufficient.
Yet somehow, in just six months, everything’s changed.
“How can the DOE now claim that it does not need to go through a formal rulemaking process in reversing course and implementing a new LNG approval regime?” Fisher wrote.
Let’s be serious: This isn’t just a bureaucratic delay. It’s a political maneuver by an embattled president scrambling to shore up his left-wing base as he seeks reelection. Nothing will change now until at least 2025 — and likely much later if Biden is reelected.
After taking office, Biden “paused” O&G lease sales on federal lands and waters — keeping the nation frozen in a standstill for three years.
In states like Colorado with significant public lands, federal law mandates quarterly lease sales. The Biden administration has stymied them all — except the one occasion their hand was forced.
In Summer 2022, the Bureau of Land Management held oil and gas lease sales for approximately 144,000 acres of federal land in Colorado and six other Western states. The available acreage was 80% less than planned — and still, only because a federal judge ordered the sale.
Three years with just one court-ordered sale is not a freeze. It’s a de facto ban in disguise — and it proves we shouldn’t take the LNG pause lightly.
The entire Biden approach signals a seismic energy policy shift — replete with political posturing and regulatory uncertainty for an industry that makes major investments 5-plus years out.
Republican U.S. Sen. John Kennedy has denounced Biden’s move for jeopardizing a pending permit for Louisiana’s Calcasieu Pass 2 export terminal — which would be the nation’s largest at $20 billion in U.S. industry investments.
Colorado isn’t a coastal state, but we stand to lose, too. We already have.
The proposed Jordan Cove Terminal in Oregon promised significant opportunities for Colorado producers, especially on the Western Slope. A pipeline connecting the regions would have opened a direct pathway to overseas markets, particularly in Asia.
In 2021, Oregon environmental officials and the Biden administration stifled the project, prompting the company to withdraw after nearly 10 years.
Even before the Biden LNG pause, losing Jordan Cove was a missed opportunity on the global stage — abandoning a vital conduit for Western Slope energy to reach Asian markets that could have shrunk their carbon footprints with U.S.-made energy.
Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, access to American energy has served as a vital barrier against their malignant attempts to expand influence. A recent Eurasia Group analysis underscored the critical role American gas exports play in sustaining Europe’s energy supply.
Bennet and Hickenlooper have advocated a hardline stance against Russia, especially concerning fossil fuel imports from Russia and Belarus. Do they want to inadvertently empower Putin by hampering America’s lifeline for European allies — all to placate Biden’s activist base?
Let’s be real: This isn’t about mitigating environmental impacts. It’s a political smokescreen for an election-year strategy and extreme green energy agenda.
Expanding the LNG freeze may temporarily curb energy costs for Americans, as less product is sent overseas. But the long-term costs are dire.
Left in the lurch, our European allies and developing nations will turn to “dirtier” sources — escalating emissions. After an expensive green experiment, Germany is now regressing to coal.
Russia and China will benefit. Meanwhile, our own energy producers get the shaft. That’s what we call a lose-lose.
Sens. Bennet and Hickenlooper must champion reason and follow the science. Lifting Biden’s energy freezes would be more than a win for Colorado — it would be a stride toward globally responsible energy policies.
Jimmy Sengenberger is an investigative journalist, public speaker, and host of “The Jimmy Sengenberger Show” Saturdays from 7 a.m. to 10 a.m. on News/Talk 710 KNUS. Reach Jimmy online at Jimmysengenberger.com or on X (formerly Twitter) @SengCenter.
