A study commissioned by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) released a report effectively putting a stamp of approval on expanded exports—liquefied natural gas (LNG) in particular. The report was commissioned in advance of a final decision by the Obama Administration on LNG exports.

“Benefits that come from export expansion more than outweigh the losses from reduced capital and wage income to U.S. consumers,” said the report released in December by NERA Economic Consulting.

As part of a broader effort to further inform decisions related to LNG exports, the DOE commissioned NERA Economic Consulting to conduct a third-party analysis in order to gain a better understanding of how U.S. LNG exports could affect the public interest, with an emphasis on the energy and manufacturing sectors.

Federal law generally requires approval of gas exports to countries that have a free trade agreement (FTA) with the U.S. For countries that do not have an FTA with the U.S., the Energy Department is required to grant applications for export authorizations unless it finds that proposed exports “will not be consistent with the public interest.”

In all cases, NERA wrote, “the benefits that come from export expansion more than outweigh the losses from reduced capital and wage income to U.S. consumers, and hence LNG exports have net economic benefits in spite of higher domestic naturalgas prices.

“Net benefits to the U.S. would be highest if the U.S. becomes able to produce large In The Pipeline quantities of gas from shale at low cost, if world demand for natural gas increases rapidly, and if LNG supplies from other regions are limited,” according to the report.

Responding to the study, Thomas Pyle, president of the Institute for Energy Research, released the following statement:

“The report confirms what everyone knows—exporting American-made products creates American jobs and grows our economy. It does not matter if we are exporting wheat, airplanes, or natural gas,” Pyle wrote. “We are at no risk of running out of natural gas, especially if the federal government ends its de facto moratorium on exploration and development of new areas.

“Exporting natural gas is a win-win for the country. It’s a win for the American workers who will get good-paying jobs, and it’s a win for foreign purchasers who would benefit from abundant supplies from a friendly ally,” he continued.

“Of course, we should also be exporting the products that are derived from natural gas, but here again, the regulatory excesses and fiscal uncertainty from Washington create impediments to the manufacturing industry and limit the realization of our full economic potential,” Pyle said in the statement. “The DOE study shows that economic benefits increase as natural-gas exports increase. The fact that the federal government is holding up exporters means they are holding up badly needed economic growth.”

But U.S. Rep. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), ranking Democrat on the House Natural Resources Committee, said in a separate statement that the report confirms that prices for American and manufacturers will rise from expanded exports and constitutes a massive transfer of wealth from working Americans to natural-gas production and export companies.

Markey, who had pressed the DOE to conduct such a review, is calling on President Barack Obama and his administration to consider the interests of America’s working families and national and economic security interests as they analyze the report. “This report confirms that exporting our natural gas will lead to some big winners and many big losers in our economy,” the congressman said in a statement. “American consumers and manufacturers will be the losers, as exporting natural gas will increase domestic prices by up to 30% and reduce domestic investment and wages by $45 billion per year by 2030.

Markey has also called for a “time-out” on licensing of natural-gas export facilities until all ramifications of large-scale exports of the fuel are analyzed.

“If exports are approved, the winners are mainly those in the natural gas business and those holding their stock,” added Markey, who in called for a “time-out” on licensing of natural gas export facilities until all ramifications of large-scale exports of the fuel are analyzed.

Bill Cooper, president of the Center for Liquefied Natural Gas, disagrees with Markey’s sentiment. “DOE finds that LNG exports would increase American households’ real income at a time when millions of families are struggling financially,” he wrote in a December response. “In addition, and as this latest report from DOE clearly shows, we can export LNG without adversely affecting the availability or affordability of our abundant natural-gas supplies.”

It is expected that a final decision by President Obama on the potential export volume limits as well as exports to non-Free Trade Agreement countries will soon follow now that the DOE report has been submitted.