Trump’s DOE Shares LNG Report Biden Officials Kept Hidden

KIEV, UKRAINE - Jan 16, 2017: Vice president of USA Joe Biden during his visit to Kiev and meeting with President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko

Trump’s Department of Energy releases a crucial LNG export study that was hidden by the Biden administration for over a year, revealing findings that contradicted their policy justifications.

Key Takeaways

The Department of Energy under President Trump has provided the House Oversight Committee with a 2023 LNG export study that Biden officials withheld
The hidden study found no significant impact of increased LNG exports on greenhouse gas emissions or energy prices, contradicting the Biden administration’s claims
Biden’s DOE completed the report by September 2023 but delayed its release while implementing an LNG export permit ban in January 2024
House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer praised the Trump administration for transparency while criticizing the previous administration
The report was discovered through a court filing by GAO in September 2024, revealing its existence despite DOE officials’ claims

Hidden Study Contradicts Biden’s LNG Export Ban

The House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform has obtained a previously concealed 2023 study on liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports that directly contradicts the justifications used by the Biden administration for its controversial export permit ban. Committee Chairman James Comer announced that Trump’s Department of Energy, led by Secretary Chris Wright, provided the committee with the study that Biden officials had refused to release. The report, titled “Energy, Economic, and Environmental Assessment of U.S. LNG Exports,” was completed by September 2023 by Energy Department scientists and federal contractors but kept from both Congress and the public.

The findings of the hidden study are particularly damaging to the previous administration’s policy positions. According to documents reviewed by the committee, the report found no significant impact of increased LNG exports on greenhouse gas emissions or energy prices – directly contradicting the environmental and economic concerns cited by the Biden administration when it paused new export permits for non-Free Trade Agreement countries in January 2024. This revelation raises serious questions about the scientific basis for a policy decision that impacted America’s energy sector and international energy security commitments.

The Biden admin’s LNG study cover-up proves what we already know—D.C. bureaucrats weaponize “science” to kill American energy dominance. H.R. 381’s climate stability mandates are a Trojan horse for more red tape, driving up consumer costs while foreign producers laugh.

Comer’s…

— DOGEai (@dogeai_gov) March 19, 2025

Timeline of Concealment Exposed

The investigation by the Oversight Committee has uncovered a concerning timeline of events surrounding the withheld study. Chairman Comer’s committee first requested information from the Department of Energy in March 2024 and participated in a briefing in April regarding the LNG export ban. During that same month, the committee held a hearing with Assistant Secretary Brad Crabtree, but no documents or studies from 2023 were referenced. In May, then-Secretary Jennifer Granholm stated that an updated study would be completed “in the first quarter of next year,” giving no indication that a study had already been completed.

“Biden Administration officials, who religiously claimed to ‘follow the science,’ abandoned it to undermine American-made energy production, appease climate activists, and achieve their predetermined outcomes. As Secretary Granholm sought to weaken America’s LNG industry, the Biden Department of Energy withheld key data from both the American people and Congress in order to push forward their radical environmental agenda. President Biden and his administration will go down as the least transparent in history. I am grateful to President Trump and Secretary Wright for providing the transparency the American people deserve and for taking action to restore America’s energy dominance,” Chairman Comer said.

The existence of the 2023 study only came to light through a court filing by the Government Accountability Office in September 2024. Following this revelation, Chairman Comer and other committee members called for the immediate release of the study in October. However, when questioned in December 2024, Assistant Secretary Crabtree claimed he was “not aware” of the document and stated that a complete study did not exist in 2023, assertions now contradicted by the evidence uncovered by the committee.

Administration Contrasts in Energy Policy and Transparency

The release of the withheld study highlights sharp differences between the current and previous administrations on both energy policy and governmental transparency. The Biden administration’s pause on LNG export terminals cited concerns about rising consumer prices and environmental impacts, but the study their own department produced contradicted these claims. Energy industry analysts have long argued that America’s robust LNG export capacity strengthens global energy security, particularly for European allies seeking alternatives to Russian natural gas.

“Secretary Granholm, and Biden White House told Americans that the increase in LNG exports would disproportionately increase prices for American consumers as well as from the environment. And both these claims were refuted in the report that the Biden administration hid from Congress and the American public,” an official said.

President Trump’s energy policy has focused on reinstating America’s energy dominance, with LNG exports playing a central role in that strategy. The Trump administration’s Department of Energy has moved quickly to restart the approval process for pending LNG export applications that were stalled under the previous administration’s permit pause. This approach aligns with the findings of the now-released study, which supports the economic and environmental viability of expanded LNG exports, and reinforces the administration’s commitment to energy independence and international energy leadership.