Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has scored a legal win against the Biden Administration with a court ruling that effectively pauses an indefinite ban on approving applications to export liquified natural gas (LNG). This decision came after Texas, alongside Louisiana and other states, challenged the ban in court.
The ban was contested as being against the Natural Gas Act’s presumption in favor of exports and appears to disregard policies set by the Department of Energy for decades which Texas and other states have been relying on. According to the Texas Attorney General's office, Texas stands as the frontrunner in the nation for the production of crude oil and natural gas, with the now-stayed ban potentially dealing a significant blow to its economy.
In the injunction, the presiding federal judge noted the entitlement of the Plaintiff States to the injunctive relief they pursued concerning the LNG Export Ban. "The Court finds that the Plaintiff States are entitled to the Injunctive Relief requested as to the LNG Export Ban. Accordingly, the Court will grant Plaintiffs' Motion for Preliminary Injunction, and order that the LNG Export Ban be stayed in its entirety, effective immediately," they said in a statement embedded in the lawsuit documentation, as per the Texas Attorney General's office.
Praising the court's ruling, Paxton said, "This ruling means Biden’s illegal ban does not prevent Texas natural gas from reaching the market while the lawsuit continues," he explained in the statement. "While I continue fighting for Texans against the Biden Administration, producers can take their natural gas to market instead of flaring it. This will protect Texas jobs and keep our critical energy industry running," as stated by the Texas Attorney General's office. The implications of this judicial pause have immediate effects not only on producers but also on the broader energy industry in Texas and other natural gas-reliant sectors.
