HAVE YOU HUGGED A FRACKER TODAY? Poland Finds A Friend In US Shale.

American shale gas is, at long last, penetrating into Eastern Europe. Poland just purchased its first cargoes of U.S. liquified natural gas (LNG), an important milestone in Europe’s quest to reduce its dependence on Russian energy imports. . . .

Europe has a gas problem, and America is helping to solve it. The continent has long relied on Russia for its natural gas supplies, and currently sources roughly a third of those hydrocarbons from Russian companies—predominantly Gazprom. That gas comes with conditions, though. Moscow has used contract terms and prices to coerce its European customers, offering cushy deals to countries it sees as friendly to the Kremlin’s interests, and hiking prices or, in the case of Ukraine, halting supplies altogether when a country crosses it.

For years, this seemed to be Europe’s fate, as the continent had few other options for overland pipeline suppliers to help it meet its natural gas demand. The advent of LNG changed that, however, by allowing any country with a port to import super-chilled natural gas on board ships from suppliers all around the world. After Russia’s annexation of Crimea, Europe began to accelerate its development of LNG import infrastructure as a way to help reduce its dependence on Gazprom.

Faster, please.