Energy and Climate

The world faces two urgent, intertwined energy challenges…
Lifting billions out of energy poverty and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

At a Glance

  • More than 700 million people have no access to electricity. Billions more rely on wood, dung, and charcoal for cooking and heat.
  • The earth is warming. The climate is changing. These challenges are not in conflict. USLNG addresses both simultaneously.
  • A coal-to-gas switch reduces CO2 emissions by ≈50% immediately, at scale, without waiting for new technology.
  • Nine independent LCAs confirm that USLNG delivers significant GHG reductions over coal, even accounting for upstream methane.

The world faces two urgent, intertwined energy challenges: lifting billions out of energy poverty and reducing the GHG emissions warming the planet. These challenges are not in conflict. USLNG addresses both.

More than 700 million people have no access to electricity. Billions more rely on wood, charcoal, and animal dung for cooking and heat, fuels that cause respiratory disease, environmental destruction, and perpetual poverty. As DOE Sec. Chris Wright has argued, energy poverty is the world’s most pressing humanitarian crisis. Reliable, affordable energy is not a luxury. It is the foundation of human dignity, economic development, and national security.

At the same time, climate change demands urgent action. The earth is warming. Humans are largely responsible. LNG Allies fully supports the goal of reducing GHG emissions.

The critical insight (one too many climate advocates miss) is that the nations burning the most coal are also home to most of the world’s energy poor. A coal-to-gas switch powered by USLNG solves both problems simultaneously: it brings reliable, affordable energy to people who need it, and it cuts GHG emissions by ≈50% compared to coal. No new technology required. No decade-long infrastructure buildout. The fuel exists, the export capacity exists, and America is ready to deliver.

[U.S. CO2 Reductions 2008–2022 Chart]

The United States has proven this at home. Since 2008, the shift from coal to natural gas in U.S. power generation has driven greater CO2 reductions than all U.S. renewable energy deployment combined. We are now the world’s largest LNG exporter, ready to help the world replicate our experience.

We are not anti-renewables. We are pro-reality. The fastest, most cost-effective path to meaningful global GHG reductions runs through both: widespread renewable deployment and immediate coal-to-gas switching (with energy efficiency improvements, too). Natural gas is demonstrably cleaner than coal. The emissions comparison is not close.

[Powerplant Air Emissions Comparison Chart]

Setting the Record Straight on Methane

Critics argue that upstream methane leaks render natural gas “no better than coal.” This claim has been examined and disproved by nine independent life cycle analyses conducted by DOE, leading universities, and private research institutions since 2014. The science is not ambiguous. That said, methane leakage is a serious issue the U.S. natural gas and LNG export industries take seriously. LNG Allies supports direct regulation of methane emissions and industry efforts to eliminate flaring and leaks. Responsible production and climate leadership are not in conflict.

What This Means for Your Country

If your nation is still burning coal, USLNG offers the fastest, most reliable path to cutting emissions now… Not in 2040, not when battery storage reaches grid scale, but today. If your people lack access to reliable electricity, USLNG can fuel the power generation that changes lives. The United States has proven this at home. We are ready to help you prove it in yours.

To learn how USLNG can help your nation meet its energy and climate commitments, connect with LNG Allies President Fred Hutchison on LinkedIn.

Our Position on Energy and Climate

  1. Energy poverty is the world’s most urgent humanitarian crisis.
  2. The earth is warming. The climate is changing. Humans are largely responsible.
  3. We support any pathway to net-zero GHG emissions that includes natural gas as a complement to conservation and renewables.
  4. Methane is a potent GHG that should be directly regulated. We support eliminating oil and gas flaring and methane leaks.
  5. USLNG serves both humanitarian and climate goals, delivering affordable energy to the world’s energy poor while displacing coal.

The Science: Nine Independent LCAs

Goncalves, C. (2024). Comparative GHG Footprint Analysis for European and Asian Supplies of USLNG, Pipeline Gas, and Coal. Berkeley Research Group for LNG Allies.

Vidas, H. (2020). Update to the LCA of GHG Emissions for USLNG Exports. ICF for API.

Roman-White, S., et al. (2019). Life Cycle GHG Perspective on Exporting LNG from the United States: 2019 Update. NETL, DOE.

Mallapragada, D.S., et al. (2019). Life Cycle GHG Impacts of Coal and Imported Gas-Based Power Generation in the Indian Context. Environ. Sci. Technol., 53, 539–549.

Kasumu, A.S., et al. (2018). Country-Level LCA of GHG Emissions from LNG Trade for Electricity Generation. Environ. Sci. Technol. 52, 1735–1746.

Mallapragada, D.S., et al. (2018). Life Cycle GHG Emissions and Freshwater Consumption of Liquefied Marcellus Shale Gas Used for International Power Generation. Journal of Cleaner Production, 205, 672–680.

Raj, R., et al. (2016). A Well-to-Wire LCA of Canadian Shale Gas for Electricity Generation in China. Energy, pp. 642–652.

Abrahams, L., et al. (2015). Life Cycle GHG Emissions from USLNG Exports: Implications for End Uses. Environ. Sci. Technol. 49, 3237–3245.

Coleman, J., et al. (2015). Calibrating LNG Export LCA: Accounting for Legal Boundaries and Post-Export Markets. CIRL Occasional Paper No. 49.

Skone, T.J., et al. (2014). Life Cycle GHG Perspective on Exporting LNG from the United States. NETL, DOE.