It seems that every day, the topic of liquefied natural gas and Southwest Louisiana are reported on somewhere in the world.

     Recently, news teams from Switzerland and Spain visited the region to talk to locals and business leaders about the LNG industry.

     Our side of the world, due to multi-billion dollar investments in LNG facilities development, was already garnering attention in energy magazines, trade journals, and business news.

     Russia and Ukraine’s conflict and the corresponding impact on European energy markets have intensified the global LNG market conversation.

     Southwest Louisiana and Southeast Texas are basically the focal points for the world.

     Yes, we are it!

     In an effort to keep up with the fast-moving LNG atmosphere in our region, the Alliance/Chamber SWLA has developed a section on the agency website designated for this form of energy. The public can access this site at https://www.allianceswla.org/swlalng.

     What readers will find here over time is a comprehensive list of news stories, links to videos, factoids, etc.

     The Alliance/Chamber SWLA staff is realizing that even though our region is deeply connected to industry (chemical, and petro-chemical), it would be good for us all to have access to LNG and related topics to educate the community.

     Recently, I spoke with a group of people who we would refer to as “in the know” about the LNG industry. Several informed me that they really did not grasp what LNG is.

     The Alliance/Chamber SWLA believes our locals and stakeholders deserve information about LNG as well as any other business sector that exists in our market.

     Our intention is to utilize the website and social media platforms to improve our community’s knowledge base.

     One topic we will start to delve into more is carbon sequestration.

     Just what is this concept?

     According to the United States Geological Survey (USGS) website (https://www.usgs.gov/faqs/what-carbon-sequestration) “carbon sequestration is the process of capturing and storing atmospheric carbon dioxide. It is one method of reducing the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere with the goal of reducing global climate change.”

     Southwest Louisiana could be home to two carbon sequestration projects:

• Gulf Coast Sequestration started its permitting process in 2020 with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).  “Located in close proximity to one of the nation’s busiest industrial corridors, GCS will partner with industrial customers to capture CO2 and safely contain it underground. In recent years, technological developments and new federal tax credits have made it economically attractive for some industrial facilities to install CCS systems to dramatically reduce their CO2 emissions,” according to a company statement.
• Sempra Infrastructure, a subsidiary of Sempra, announced this week it signed a participation agreement with TotalEnergies, Mitsui & Co., Ltd, and Mitsubishi Corporation for the development of the proposed Hackberry Carbon Sequestration project in Southwest Louisiana. Last year, Hackberry Carbon Sequestration started its EPA permitting process for the project. “This project is expected to be among the first North American carbon capture facilities designed to receive and store CO2 from multiple sources, and our goal is for this facility to set the gold standard for safe and permanent CO2 storage,” said Justin Bird, CEO of Sempra Infrastructure.

     These types of stories and information are what the Alliance/Chamber SWLA wants to share and provide experts to explain what they mean to us all.

     Our world is in turbulent times, and Southwest Louisiana and Southeast Texas are in the economic and geopolitical mix because of large industries.

     Visit the Alliance website and social media platforms to get information and take the time to research credible sources of information.