Lone LNG terminal would lower gas prices 10-20%

University of Oregon Economist Peter Romero predicts that adding just one Liquefied Natural Gas terminal along California's coast will lower natural gas prices between 10 and 20%:

Peter Romero, a University of Oregon economist who once served as former Gov. Pete Wilson's top economic adviser, said such a reduction in gas prices would lead to the creation of as many as 50,000 new jobs and add up to $4.6 billion to California's gross domestic product.

"Numbers like that are equal to one to three months of the economic growth in the entire state, so that is not chump change," Romero said.

Natural gas prices in California have been as much as four times higher than the national average in recent months and have doubled since 2002, according to a California Energy Commission study released in February. Although it is also the fuel most commonly used to heat households, the two biggest uses are for electricity generation (33 percent) and industrial use (32 percent).