Contact: Regina L. Davis, 202-898-9382, rdavis@naruc.org

NARUC to Publish Study on Liquefied Natural Gas

WASHINGTON—In response to the United States’ changing role regarding liquefied natural gas, the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners will produce a new report focused on LNG. NARUC President John Betkoski III has tapped New York Commissioner and Gas Committee Chair Diane X. Burman and Chair of the Staff Subcommittee on Gas Andreas Thanos, of the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities, to author the new publication.  

In 2009, NARUC published Global Liquefied Natural Gas Supply: An Introduction for Public Utility Commissioners, which explored the supply dimensions of LNG: where it comes from, what it costs, and the factors that make it an important resource for state commissions to consider. During that period, LNG discussions focused on imports.  However, by February 2016, the United States became an exporter of LNG. In addition, new gas production and liquefaction technologies have allowed new approaches on how LNG is used.

Moreover, NARUC has facilitated recent discussions on LNG. At its February 2018 Policy Summit in Washington, D.C., the Staff Subcommittee on Gas hosted a discussion between the Center for LNG and the Industrial Energy Consumers of America and the Committee on Gas covered issues surrounding the LNG export permitting process. 

“The liquefied natural gas market has evolved and our members have to stay apprised of the shifts in this sector,” said Betkoski. “Although we have convened important educational panels to discuss this issue, time is right to build on our previous research and publish a comprehensive report on the state of the LNG market in the U.S. I am confident that under the leadership of Commissioner Diane Burman and Andreas Thanos, we will deliver a product that is beneficial and advances our understanding of LNG.”

The report is expected to be released in November 2018. See http://bit.ly/2009NARUC_LNG for the 2009 report.

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About NARUC

NARUC is a non-profit organization founded in 1889 whose members include the governmental agencies that are engaged in the regulation of utilities and carriers in the fifty States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. NARUC's member agencies regulate telecommunications, energy, and water utilities. NARUC represents the interests of State public utility commissions before the three branches of the Federal government.