Alaska LNG project may be reviewed for greenhouse gas emissions

The U.S. Department of Energy will conduct a supplemental environmental review of the $38 billion Alaska LNG project, analyzing the project’s greenhouse gas emissions as the Biden administration prioritizes concerns about climate change.

The Trump administration approved the project last year for construction, operation, and to export the liquefied natural gas from Alaska to other countries, following a three-year environmental review of the project.

It’s uncertain how the supplemental review will affect the project. The Department of Energy in April said it retains the authority to “modify or set aside” its 2020 decision to authorize Alaska LNG exports.

The state agency that owns the project, the Alaska Gasline Development Corp., said in a statement that approval for the project remains “in full effect” during the supplemental review.

The Department of Energy’s “decision to conduct additional analyses doesn’t directly affect the Alaska LNG project,” the state agency said in a prepared statement sent by its spokesman, Tim Fitzpatrick.

The project would ship gas from the North Slope to the Kenai Peninsula in an 800-mile pipeline. In Nikiski, the gas would be super-chilled into a liquid. It would be loaded onto tankers for oversea delivery to customers in Asia.

Alaska leaders consider the project important for the state’s economic future.