The US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has unanimously approved a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that would create the country's first blanket authorisation programme for LNG facilities — a framework that could let qualifying projects move ahead without individual approval orders under Sections 3 and 7 of the Natural Gas Act.

For an industry that has lived on case-by-case commission orders for decades, that single procedural shift matters more than any adjective in the 90-page draft. It's the difference between waiting in a queue and operating under standing rules.

Where does the idea come from?

FERC didn't invent the model. The commission modelled the programme on its blanket certificate programme for interstate natural gas pipelines, which has run for roughly four decades. Pipelines have used it to get routine work done quickly; FERC now wants LNG operators to have the same lane.

The proposal cleared in a unanimous vote — no dissents, no competing drafts. That's rare enough in a commission that has split on other energy matters, and it signals the direction of travel.

How would the three tiers work?

The NOPR sorts activities by the scale of their potential impact, and the clock attached to each tier is the number operators will study hardest:

• Automatic approval: activities that would not increase a facility's approved capacity or alter its operating conditions.
• 60 days' prior notice: actions that might increase plant capacity while staying within current site boundaries.
• 90 days' advance notification: entirely new infrastructure — liquefaction trains, storage tanks, marine loading berths and associated auxiliary systems. Projects in this tier may extend beyond a plant's current perimeter, but they face restrictions on facility type, location and scale.

Read together, the tiers redraw the map for brownfield expansion at US export terminals. A debottlenecking project inside the fence line sits in a different regulatory universe from a new train — but both now have a defined pathway with a defined clock.

What did the chairman say?

FERC chairman Laura Swett framed the proposal in strategic terms. "American energy dominance requires us to build and maintain the energy infrastructure our country needs without unnecessary delay," she said. "I am immensely proud of FERC's historic proposal."

She added: "It shows what can be possible when we combine regulatory excellence, robust safeguards and a firm commitment to the nation's energy future. Consumers benefit when more energy infrastructure is online, dependable and affordable, and FERC is helping make that future a reality."

The blanket authorisation isn't a free pass. The draft rule attaches standard environmental and engineering conditions, intended to address potential impacts from projects carried out under the programme. Additional requirements would ensure compliance with existing legal obligations.

What happens next?

The clock starts at publication. Once the NOPR appears in the Federal Register, stakeholders get 60 days to comment before FERC finalises anything.

Expect developers, environmental groups and state regulators to contest where the tier boundaries sit — particularly whether capacity increases inside existing boundaries belong in the 60-day lane or deserve fuller review.

The watch item is the comment window's close: what emerges as the final rule will set the permitting timeline for every incremental train, tank and berth at US LNG terminals for years to come.