"EPA: Pruitt's Overseas Travel Pulls Icahn LNG Money Into Focus"

"A December trip to Morocco by EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt could benefit Carl Icahn, an activist investor who holds a controlling stake in the largest U.S. natural gas exporter and who helped Pruitt secure his position in President Trump's Cabinet.

Icahn, made famous as a corporate raider in the 1980s, captured Houston-based Cheniere Energy Inc. through aggressive stock buys in 2015, using his holdings to force out Cheniere's founder and CEO, Charif Souki. He quickly remade the company's management, which he had accused of taking outsized risks, and directed Cheniere to get its Gulf Coast liquefied natural gas export terminals up and running.

Cheniere is the first company to ship LNG from the continental U.S. to global markets.

As Pruitt faces intense scrutiny for his expensive travel and close ties to corporate lobbyists, the EPA administrator's trip to Morocco is attracting more questions. At the time, EPA said Pruitt's agenda for the overseas trip included exploring 'new and ongoing areas of collaboration' under a U.S.-Morocco free-trade agreement and Morocco's 'interest in importing LNG.'"

Jenny Mandel and Jean Chemnick report for EnergyWire April 12, 2018.