NEW YORK, May 17: The US Energy Department has conditionally approved liquefied natural gas exports from Freeport LNG terminal in Quintana Island, Texas, to non-free trade agreement countries, opening the door to a major expansion of US gas trade.

The department’s decision would allow the terminal, owned by Freeport LNG Development, to export up to 1.4 billion cubic feet of natural gas a day for 20 years. It was the second permit granted by the government. With natural gas production in the United States soaring, companies have been eyeing rapidly expanding markets in Asia, where the fuel fetches a hefty premium to US prices.

The Freeport project is the first to receive approval to ship US LNG to non-FTA countries since May 2011, when the Department of Energy granted a permit to the Sabine Pass project.

“With today’s decision, it appears that the country is moving forward in becoming an important energy export player.

However, we do not read the Freeport decision as a change in stance by the DOE. Rather, we expect the agency will continue to take a measured approach to the pending applications,” said Teri Viswanath, director of commodity strategy at BNP Paribas.

Meanwhile, Phil Flynn, a senior market analyst at the Price Futures Group called it a ‘historic moment’ for the US.

“To think in 2002 we were worried about how to import natural gas and now we’re approving to export natural gas.

It’s an historic time for our economy and an historic time in the energy business. It goes to show you that technology can come through when everybody else says’s it’s impossible,” he said.—Reuters