U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, today applauded the Department of Energy’s decision to renew authorization for liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports for Alaska’s Kenai LNG facility.

“I welcome the news of this important renewal. For nearly half a century, Alaska has exported liquefied natural gas to our friends and allies overseas. As projects get underway in the rest of the nation, and planning continues for an even larger project here in the State, we should remember that Kenai set the precedent for the historic build-out of export capability now underway in North America. Alaska led the way, Alaskans can now continue to lead the way, and all Alaskans should be proud.”

Murkowski, chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources committee, warned in 2011 that the Kenai plant’s closure highlighted “the urgent need we face to find a way to commercialize our North Slope gas reserves,” and welcomed the reopening of the facility and its export authorization in 2014. She has also successfully pressed the Administration to move expeditiously in its approval process for the AK LNG project, a natural gas pipeline stretching from the North Slope to Southcentral Alaska.