Never, Ever, Ever, Make Yourself an Unreliable Supplier

C.O.B. Tuesday, Veriten — Episode 217
Feb. 14, 2024

Today we had the pleasure of hosting Fred Hutchison, President and CEO of LNG Allies, for a comprehensive discussion on an important and timely topic, LNG. Fred founded LNG Allies in 2014 and is a leading spokesman for the USLNG export industry with over four decades of experience in government and public relations. LNG Allies is an independent, non-profit association focused on advancing the interests of the USLNG industry and promoting the benefits of LNG exports.

We covered a lot of territory in our conversation starting with background on the formation of LNG Allies, the significant shift in the United States from being an importer to becoming the world’s largest exporter of LNG in a relatively short period, gratitude from European countries towards the United States for supplying LNG in the post-Ukraine invasion energy crunch, the ongoing debate about natural gas as a lower impact fuel and its role in the energy transition, the impact of recent geopolitical events and energy prices on energy security and industrial activity, and potential motivations and implications behind the Biden Administration’s pause on LNG approvals.

We touch on the shift in resistance to long-term LNG contracts, opposition and lobbying against LNG exports, global trust in the United States as a supplier and concerns about reliability with changing administrations, the potential for LNG growth in other countries, the impact of U.S. policy decisions on energy supply, and concern with the lack of understanding among policymakers about energy issues. Fred shares his perspective on the diverse export market for LNG, emerging markets in future LNG demand, challenges faced by countries in accessing financing for LNG projects due to credit rating issues, and much more. We ended by asking Fred for his view on the state of journalism and public debate as a writer himself.

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