President Barack Obama's nominee for energy secretary, Ernest Moniz, on Tuesday reiterated the Obama administration's position that decisions to license liquefied natural gas exports from the US should be based on a transparent, analytic approach that considers cumulative economic impacts.
"We need to have strong analysis grounded in the best data," Moniz said. "As we move forward in any determinations, including those that I understand I will tackle if confirmed, in terms of the export license question, we certainly want to make sure that we get decent data is relevant to the decision at hand."
Moniz said that if confirmed, he would closely examine the applications, and said they should be reviewed in an application-by-application basis.
"There are many factors. For example, really understanding and observing what happens with elasticity of production when there are exports," Moniz said. "Are we producing more gas? Are we producing more wet gas, which provides more natural gas liquids for our manufacturing industries?"
Moniz, a physicist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, made the comments during a wide-ranging hearing with the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee to consider his nomination.
A massive increase in US shale-gas production has led to calls for more LNG exports, but that has proved controversial. Some opponents of exports it will drive up the cost of natural gas in the US, putting pressure on domestic manufacturing, which has benefitted from cheap gas prices.
Law requires DOE to quickly approve applications for LNG exports to countries with which the US has a free trade agreement, but to export to non-free trade agreement countries -- which include Japan and some in Europe that hope to import LNG from the US -- companies must apply through DOE. The agency is considering 16 applications to non-FTA countires, and has approved only one other.
Senator Ron Wyden, the chairman of the committee, has been critical of a previous study from DOE on LNG exports, but said that he was happy with the response from Moniz on his concerns.
"I was concerned that the study that was done for the administration had two serious shortcomings. One, the data ... was outdated, and particularly given the rapid developments of natural gas, that is serious. And second, it doesn't reflect the regional impacts of natural gas pricing," Wyden said.
"I asked if he would revisit that issue, with particular respect to the price question, and he said he would, I was pleased with that answer," he said.
In a 2011 hearing to discuss an MIT report on US gas, Moniz said he supported a global market for natural gas, including the elimination of barriers to LNG exports.
Some environmental groups have criticized Moniz for his support for natural gas as a bridge fuel to more prevalent use of renewables, as well as his past support for hydraulic fracturing, which is responsible for the increase in US gas production. Moniz, however, has said that environmental oversight is crucial for fracking. "It is really, very important to have public confidence in environmental stewardship as we produce this resource," he told the committee.
"The Department of Energy is not charged with regulation of this, but I think the department could contribute going forward," he said. "For example, one approach could be with the issue of methane emissions, where we could use some new data on emissions. The Department of Energy would be well-positioned to work with [the Environmental Protection Agency], and for example, with industry to make sure we have the best and most-reliable data."
Moniz drew praise and little challenge from almost all of the senators on the committee, including Wyden, an Oregon Democrat, who said he would vote in favor of confirming Moniz. Senator Lisa Murkowski, the senior Republican on the committee, echoed that view.
"You may prove to be the rare nominee who gathers wide bipartisan acclaim," Murkowski said. "I am impressed by both your work and your knowledge."
Moniz also reiterated his view that developing carbon capture and storage is crucial for the continued use of coal. He also said he supported the development of small modular nuclear reactors, a key research-and-development initiative at DOE aimed at producing reactors smaller than those common now, which would be more economical and safer.
Moniz has deep roots in the federal government, having served as undersecretary of energy at DOE from 1998 to 2001 during the Clinton administration.
