Natural gas will enable the EU’s transition to climate neutrality, Kadri Simson told European lawmakers before she received their backing to become the bloc’s next energy commissioner on Thursday.

Simson, a liberal from Estonia’s Centre Party and a former minister of economic affairs and infrastructure, set-out her energy policy vision during a three-hour hearing in front of the parliament’s committee on industry, research and energy (ITRE).

Simson, who received cautious support from a majority of MEPs, defended the use of natural gas to wean countries off coal, according to Climatechangenews.com. Gas “might be the most cost-efficient option for replacing coal-based power plants,” she told MEPs, citing energy security as another reason to invest in “future-proof” gas infrastructure.

She said liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports from the US had “been successful and it should be continued”. As of May 2019, about 13.4% of all EU gas imports came from the US, an increase of 272% since 2016, according to the EU Commission.