Despite its clear anti-oil stance, the Biden administration just approved a new oil export terminal for the Gulf Coast of Texas, which will become the nation’s largest oil export infrastructure.
While the new terminal will add some 2 million barrels per day of new export capacity, the news did not catch much public attention and the project was given the green light very quietly, according to the Texas Grandstand.
The approval comes amid suggestions from Democrats in Congress that the United States should limit oil exports to secure local supplies.
La Tribune notes that approval for the project was filed earlier this week, after the end of the COP27 climate conference. However, the regulatory approval of the Sea Port Oil Terminal has not gone completely unnoticed.
“President Biden cannot lead the fight against climate change, protect public health, or advocate for environmental justice while allowing fossil fuel companies to lock in decades of fossil fuel extraction,” said the main policy advocate for Earthworks, a non-profit climate organization.
The Houston Chronicle suggested in a previous report, however, this regulatory approval does not guarantee construction. The outlet reported that if built, the seaport oil terminal would be the first of four projects proposed in 2019 to come to fruition. The goal of these projects was to make oil loading more efficient and reduce transportation costs.
“It is gratifying to see the Maritime Administration recognize the significant environmental and maritime safety benefits of SPOT over current industry practices,” said Enterprise Products Partners, the company behind the Sea. Port Oil Terminal.
The project involves building a terminal about 30 miles south of Freeport, at Surfside, and a pipeline that will transport oil to the offshore facility from Enterprise Products Partners’ regional network. The new terminal will make it much easier to load larger tankers that normal Gulf Coast ports cannot accommodate.
By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com
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