Natural gas glut dredges up a dilemma for Obama

The drilling boom that has led to a glut of natural gas and sent prices spiraling downward is causing a quandary for President Barack Obama and his administration, which is struggling to decide whether the United States should share the bounty with foreign countries, and if so, how much. Although the Energy Department recently approved Houston-based Cheniere Energy’s plans to begin exporting liquefied natural gas from its Sabine Pass terminal outside Lake Charles, The Houston Chronicle reports, the government has put off verdicts on similar applications from at least seven other companies. Administration officials say they’ll make those decisions after they get the results of a study commissioned by the Energy Department on how allowing companies to sell U.S.-produced natural gas overseas would affect prices for American consumers. The study is due out this summer. The Obama administration supports domestic natural gas and isn’t opposed to exports, White House energy adviser Heather Zichal says, but also is committed to “protecting American consumers and making sure we’re sending the right signal to industry and the manufacturing sector.” Applications filed with the Energy Department could put the United States on track to export about 16 billion cubic feet of liquefied natural gas each day—nearly a quarter of U.S. daily production in 2011. But few expect all of those proposals to win federal approval, and it could be years before construction is finished on those that are approved. Get the full story here.