EnergyFactor By ExxonMobil | Pespectives has a new home

Natural gas exports to create jobs and economic benefits, new studies conclude

Last week the White House announced its intention to make America “a magnet for jobs and manufacturing so we continue to build things the rest of the world buys.”

One way to advance that worthy ambition – and to give the overall economy a much-needed lift – would be for the Obama administration to give the green light to applications to export liquefied natural gas (LNG) that are presently on file with the Department of Energy.

Two new reports show just how powerful the job growth and other economic benefits would be if the federal government endorsed the same free-trade principles with respect to energy exports that it does with virtually every other product – from agriculture and aircraft to pharmaceuticals and vehicles.

The first study, conducted by consulting firm ICF International on behalf of the American Petroleum Institute, calculates that LNG exports will create huge numbers of new jobs.

ICF considered a range of scenarios and determined that the net effect on U.S. employment from LNG exports between 2016 and 2035 could range from 73,100 to as many as 452,300 total jobs with exports of 16 billion cubic feet per day. And contrary to assertions by protectionist U.S. manufacturers that oppose a market-based exports policy, manufacturing employment increases on average between 7,800 and 76,800 net jobs during the period. And that includes 1,700 to 11,400 net chemical, petrochemical and refining job gains.

Of course, manufacturing and exports mean economic benefits not just for particular industries, but for the country as a whole. The ICF study calculates that the net effect on American’s gross domestic product would be between $15.6 billion and $73.6 billion each year.

Meanwhile a study from the Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council (SBEC) provides more evidence that exports will produce broad economic benefits. It notes how small business already has prospered from the nation’s 27 percent increase in natural gas production between 2005 and 2011, particularly in terms of employment.

ExxonMobil is not a small business, but we know how important small businesses are to our economy.  Many of the people we do business with on a daily basis are with small- and medium-sized businesses. In fact, more than 90 percent of U.S. businesses involved in oil and gas extraction and handling have fewer than 500 employees.

That’s why we’re encouraged by SBEC’s conclusion: “LNG exports guided by market forces mean further expanding opportunity for small and mid-size businesses to be created, to grow and to create jobs.”

Natural gas exports would provide a big boost for American businesses big and small – and for American jobs and economic growth.


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