A secure gas supply and climate action go hand-in-hand

A global gas crisis has created apparent tensions between energy security and climate action.

While Europe works tirelessly to replace Russian gas with new liquified natural gas (LNG) supplies from abroad, some are citing this to question the continent’s commitment to net-zero carbon emissions. Meanwhile, as the U.S. becomes the number-one supplier of gas to Europe, Washington is often criticized over its own claims to be back in the international climate arena. 

Washington and Brussels have undeniably sent mixed signals on the nexus between climate and energy security. But ultimately, these two objectives are not at odds, and are in fact complementary.

To strengthen transatlantic cooperation on both, the Biden administration must lead by sending an unmistakable message that climate action and secure gas supply are not an either-or proposition. The administration needs to clearly articulate the role of responsibly produced gas as an enabler of the green transition and its long-term importance in global decarbonization and energy security efforts. 

Despite occasional accusations of climate hypocrisy, the administration and its European Union (EU) counterparts deserve enormous credit for squaring the supply-security and climate circle amid the greatest energy crisis in the last five decades.

The administration has set a standard for climate action at home through the landmark Inflation Reduction Act, while also restaking U.S. claims to international climate leadership by returning to the Paris climate accord and playing a leading role in the COP process, beginning with the administration’s efforts in Glasgow to promote the Global Methane Pledge, an important starting point for reconciling reducing emissions with the continued need for gas production.

Simultaneously, the administration has led a massive restructuring of the U.S. LNG trade to provide emergency gas supplies to U.S. allies at lightning pace. 

More work needs to be done. Next winter, a tighter global market for LNG and Russian imports trending near zero will heighten the pressure on the European energy system. A winter as mild as the last one cannot be taken for granted. In addition to more clean energy supply to displace Russian gas’ role in the European energy system, more gas molecules are needed on the global marketplace, this winter and beyond.  

Gas — and particularly American gas—can play an indispensable role in both energy security and decarbonization. The International Energy Agency noted that coal-to-gas switching displaced 500 million tons of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere in the 2010s. In Europe, the replacement of Russian gas — among the most methane-intensive in the world — with U.S. LNG could cut half of the lifecycle emissions associated with European gas consumption.

Aligning the transatlantic gas trade with the highest standards for methane abatement and decarbonization can help make Europe’s estrangement from Russian gas as climate friendly as possible while still ensuring European allies a secure supply of energy. 

This winter, an all-of-the-above approach is needed to bolster Europe against Russia’s energy threats. Europe has done admirably well in saving energy while deploying new renewable generation to displace Russian hydrocarbons. Last year was the first in which wind and solar provided more electricity than natural gas in Europe. Yet gas remains a key part of the equation, with new supplies required for heating, industry and a rapidly growing power sector. That will require new investments and new projects, which can happen only if regulators provide the necessary permits and policymakers do not attempt to legislate the fuel out of existence. 

Therefore, it is crucial that the U.S. government make clear that gas is part of the solution to alleviate climate and energy security concerns. While many in the diverse electoral coalition backing President Biden are loathe to hear it, American LNG exports and climate mitigation can and must go hand-in-hand. 

Natural gas’s long-term future in a decarbonized energy mix must be accompanied by strong measures to decarbonize production and to end methane leakage once-and-for-all. Its presence within the energy system will be significantly longer than many realize, providing firm power to support deployment of renewables, nuclear, and zero-carbon gases from hydrogen to biomethane. Until these technologies reach their full maturity, gas will be a needed complement to energy-secure decarbonization to provide reliable, flexible, low-carbon baseload power. 

Energy security and climate action cannot be compartmentalized. Neglecting one at the expense of the other is destined to backfire.

Clean energy has a clear role in reducing the political power of fossil fuel exporters to impose their political will on adversaries. At the same time, moving too quickly on the energy transition risks creating bottlenecks that will lead to higher prices. Populist backlash remains a potent threat to the energy transition in both Europe and North America, and investing in both gas and zero-carbon energy is critical to ensuring that the transition is as smooth and as politically durable as possible.   

Therefore, the U.S. administration must make clear to investors, market actors and international partners that low-carbon gas production remains a key tool to ensure that energy security and climate action advance in tandem. Failing to address this gas-climate nexus will harm both energy security and decarbonization in the long-term, to nobody’s benefit but America’s adversaries. 

Ambassador Richard L. Morningstar is the founding chairman of the Atlantic Council Global Energy Center and the former US ambassador to the European Union. Paddy Ryan is the assistant director for European energy security at the Atlantic Council Global Energy Center