Texas’ Gas-Export Clampdown Shocks Market as Blackouts Ebb
- State energy regulator moves to carry out governor’s order
- One West Coast trader takes million-dollar hit in just minutes
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Texas is restricting the flow of natural gas across state lines in an extraordinary move that some are calling a violation of the U.S. Constitution’s commerce clause.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott on Wednesday told a media briefing that he was banning gas from leaving the state through Feb. 21 to ensure in-state power generators had ample supplies. Less than 24 hours later, Texas’s top energy regulator told gas producers to offer supplies for sale in-state before shipping it elsewhere, citing the governor’s mandate.