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Top Top adviser to PM wants to replace Thompson — Telegraph-Journal, Saint John, NB
Williamson … is a former member of the Save the Passamaquoddy Bay group which is dedicated to preventing LNG tankers from using Head Harbour Passage to reach proposed natural gas terminals on the Maine side of the bay.
[Red, yellow & bold emphasis added.]
BEP takes jurisdiction over LNG proposal (Mar 26) — The Quoddy Tides, Eastport, ME
Following the March 18 meeting, the board issued a notice that it will hold a public hearing on the applications, and any individuals, government entities or organizations that would like to be intervenors to the proceedings must file a petition with the board by April 1. Intervenors are allowed to present detailed, technical information and expert witnesses regarding the proposed project and may cross-examine other witnesses. Members of the public who are not intervenors may still offer testimony at the hearing and submit written comments on the applications. A date has not yet been set for the public hearing.
FERC requests additional information regarding Calais LNG project (Mar 30) — LNG Law Blog
Yesterday [Monday] FERC requested additional information regarding the proposed Calais LNG import project. The information requested includes gas quality and interchangeability details required by the pro forma tariff and information on the associated send out pipeline.
Land Use Team: Calais Industrial Waterfront amendments found consistent (Mar 26) — Maine State Planning Office, Augusta, ME
The link below will load a PDF file (53 KB).
Calais comprehensive plan amendments supporting the creation of a new waterfront industrial zone are consistent with the Growth Management Act. That is the finding reached March 19th by the Planning and Land Use Program. The amendments to the 2005 Calais Comprehensive Plan outline the City’s vision for the addition of a riverfront port facility capable of serving deep-draft vessels. They also provide updated information on
natural resources in the area of the proposed zone. The SPO finding bolsters the City’s plan to pursue its vision through the establishment of a “Marine Industrial Zone”. The proposed zone, which includes the site of the proposed Calais LNG liquefied natural gas terminal, will be located approximately six miles south-southeast of the city center on the St. Croix River across from the Bayside Marine Terminal in New Brunswick.
CONTACT: Phil Carey at phil.carey@maine.gov or 287-3860. [Brown emphasis added.]
Shearer, Stone face off at LNG public forum (Mar 30) — Newport Now, Newport, RI
In a roughly two-hour public forum on the pros and cons of siting a proposed liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal in Fall River, Shearer fended off criticism from Save The Bay, the Newport and Bristol County Visitors and Convention Bureau, and the occasional heckler – maintaining that his company’s proposal would stimulate the region’s economy and only minimally impact Narragansett Bay and it coastal communities.
By the end of the night, few were convinced.
Danger at our doorstep [Opinion column] (Mar 30) — The Baltimore Sun, Baltimore, MD
Taking into account the increase in volume from vaporization and caused by this mixing, this means that the contents of a single large LNG storage tank with a capacity of, say, 140,000 cubic meters of [LNG], will, if ruptured, produce tens of billions of cubic feet of flammable gas. According to studies, the resulting air-gas mixture plume could extend as far as 7.3 miles from the ruptured tank.
One would assume that any substance as dangerous as this would be stored and handled as far from densely populated areas as possible. One would be wrong.
Leaving aside for a moment the possibility of simple industrial accidents, it does not take a counterterrorism specialist like me to understand that these new facilities would, if built, be significant targets for any terrorist group interested in attacking our nation.
Charles S. Faddis, a Davidsonville resident, is the former head of the Central Intelligence Agency's WMD terrorism unit. He is president of a security consulting firm and the author of books including "Willful Neglect," an examination of homeland security in America. His e-mail is charlesfaddis@hotmail.com.
GE's energy investing unit pumps $150 million into liquefied natural gas terminal, expanding core US infrastructure — MarketWatch
PASCAGOULA, Miss., Mar 31, 2010 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- GE Energy Financial Services -- pursuing its strategy of helping to build core, essential energy infrastructure -- announced today it is investing $150 million in a liquefied natural gas receiving terminal under construction in Mississippi that will increase natural gas supplies to the Northeast and Southeast United States.
The business unit of GE is acquiring Houston-based investor Crest Group's 30 percent interest in the fully contracted $1.1 billion Gulf LNG Energy terminal, expected to be completed late next year.
The terminal is adjacent to the Bayou Casotte Ship Channel in the Port of Pascagoula on the Gulf Coast. [Red, yellow & bold emphasis added.]
— The Wall Street Journal, New York, NY [Paid subscription required]
Under a pact announced Wednesday, Cheniere Energy Inc. will give J.P. Morgan's clients access to its Sabine Pass terminal in Louisiana.
Golden Pass LNG terminal to receive first Qatar shipment by Oct (Apr 1) — The Peninsula, Doha, Qatar
DOHA: The Golden Pass LNG Terminal, a liquefied natural gas terminal off the coast of Texas in the United States, will welcome its first shipment of LNG at the last quarter of this year.
Golden Pass is a joint venture [among] Qatar Petroleum (QP), ExxonMobil, RasGas and ConocoPhillips. Once completed, the terminal will be capable of processing up to 15.6 million metric tonnes of LNG per year, equivalent to about 2 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day.
Located two miles northwest of Sabine Pass, Texas, and 10 miles south of Port Arthur, Texas, the Golden Pass LNG Terminal is situated on the Sabine-Neches Waterway that separates Texas and Louisiana. The LNG terminal will include two ship unloading berths, five full-containment storage tanks, vaporization facilities, and gas send-out and ship unloading systems.
TransCanada receives FERC approval for Alaska open season — Oil & Gas Journal
Two options will be submitted for shipper assessment in the open season. The first option is a 1,700-mile line from Alaska’s North Slope to Alberta, from where the gas could be delivered on existing pipeline systems to the US. The second option would transport gas 800 miles from ANS to Valdez, Alas., where it would be converted to LNG in a facility to be built by others and then delivered by ship to North American and other international markets.
[Red emphasis added.]
(Mar 29) — KTUU-TV, Anchorage, AK
"It just boggles the mind that we might be [bringing] in foreign LNG to solve our problems when we've had this long to take meaningful steps to fix (it)," said Bill Popp with the Anchorage Economic Development Corp.
In a state so full of energy resources, buying foreign gas when you have it just doesn't make sense to state lawmakers.
— LNG Law Blog
Several candidates running for governor in Oregon participated in a debate last night. The Oregonian reports that the event was organized by a number of environmental groups and featured discussion of the LNG import project proposed in the state. Democratic candidates Bill Bradbury and John Kitzhaber offered their views on the LNG proposals, with Bradbury saying that the state should take all steps to block the LNG projects. In contrast, Kitzhaber said that domestic natural gas supplies are preferable to imports, but that he was not willing to discount LNG imports to the state completely.
(Mar 30) — KDRV-TV, Medford, OR
Opponents of a proposed liquified natural gas pipeline say they are refocusing their fight at the state-level.
"This is really a state issue. Oregon has the control, authority to control these permits. In fact, they have the responsibility to protect our region. That's what we're doing, asking the state to deny the needed permits in the interest of the Oregon public," said Olivia Schmidt with the Sierra Club.
(Mar 30) — Mail Tribune, Medford, OR
The event organized by the Sierra Club, Rogue Riverkeeper and Friends of Living Oregon Waters is at 7 p.m. at the Medford Branch Library, 205 S. Central Ave. It's open to the public.
Results from DOE expedition confirm existence of resource-quality gas hydrate in Gulf of Mexico (Mar 30) — U.S. Department of Energy, Washington, DC
Gas hydrate, a potentially immense energy resource, occurs at high saturations within reservoir-quality sands in the Gulf of Mexico, according to reports released by the Office of Fossil Energy’s (FE) National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL). [Bold red emphasis added.]
Top — (Bloomberg) BusinessWeek
Southwestern said yesterday it will spend about $47 million during the next three years to search for oil and gas across 2.5 million acres in the Maritimes Basin in New Brunswick, Canada. The company, which got 81 percent of its production last year from the Fayetteville Shale , bid for and won exclusive licenses to explore from the Department of Natural Resources in the province of New Brunswick. [Red emphasis added.]
— Telegraph-Journal, Saint John, NB
The Department of Natural Resources said that Southwestern Energy Company has successfully bid the highest amount the government has ever received to explore for oil and gas on two swaths of land, representing the largest tender call - by land mass - ever issued.
The more than 100,000 hectares Southwestern Energy will explore span from a point near Richibucto in Kent County all the way to Charlotte County's St. Andrews area.
Southwestern Energy is the second large oil and gas company - called a major in industry terms - to move into New Brunswick of late.
PHMSA determines agency has jurisdiction over Weaver’s Cove LNG pipeline proposal — LNG Law Blog
The U.S. Pipeline and Hazardous Material Safety Administration (PHMSA) has determined that the agency has jurisdiction over the "pipe in pipe" LNG transfer system proposed by Weaver's Cove LNG. PHMSA also concluded that the siting requirements for marine cargo transfer systems, found at 49 C.F.R. part 193, apply to the planned "pipe in pipe" system. Finally, PHMSA directed Weaver's Cove LNG to develop an alternative model for calculating appropriate exclusion zones along the "pipe in pipe" system , if constructed. [Bold & red emphasis added.]
— The Herald News, Fall River, MA
Alliance for a Livable Newport will host a public forum tonight to discuss the possibility of liquefied natural gas deliveriers being transported on Narragansett Bay. The forum will highlight pros and cons.
A panel discussion will feature Evan Smith, CEO of Newport and Bristol County Convention and Visitors Bureau; Gordon Shearer, CEO of Hess/Weaver’s Cove LNG; and Jonathan Stone, CEO of Save The Bay.
— LNG Law Blog
This morning the U.S. Coast Guard issued a final rule modifying the regulations for vessel traffic in Narragansett Bay. The review of the previous regulations was prompted by a 2005 federal law that required the retention of the Brightman Street Bridge in the Taunton River and a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers dredging project in the Providence River. Retention of the Brightman Street Bridge had been controversial in the efforts to site the original proposed Weaver's Cove LNG terminal in Fall River, Mass. The regulations, as modified, remove certain navigation restrictions in the Providence River and define the minimum under-keel clearance as 10% of vessel draft when not assisted by tugs or moored at an assigned berth.
— LNG Law Blog
Last week El Paso Pipeline Partners LP announced that it plans to take a 51% interest in Southern LNG Company LLC and El Paso Elba Express Co. LLC from El Paso Corp. for a purchase price of $810 million.
A gas glut — Trinidad & Tobago Express, Port-of-Spain, Trinidad and Tobago
‘Now North America has an unforeseen surfeit of natural gas. The United States’ purchases of LNG (our major usage area) have dwindled. It has enough gas under its soil to inspire dreams of self-sufficiency.
‘[E]conomies of scale and improvements in techniques have halved the production costs of shale gas, making it even cheaper than some conventional sources.’ [Red, yellow & bold emphasis added.]
[Opinion column] (Mar 28) — Anchorage Daily News, Anchorage, AK
[T]he time is now for a true all-Alaska gas line that can deliver affordable energy in-state and export our liquefied natural gas (LNG) to lucrative Asian markets. The way to accomplish this, while assuring the lowest possible tariff, is for it to be built, operated and substantially financed by the private sector but owned by Alaskans.
A bullet line might be part of our strategy but only as a backup plan to a larger volume all-Alaska gas line project. This would be a single line from Prudhoe Bay to Glennallen, where it would branch into a "Y" with one leg to Valdez and one leg to Southcentral to tie into the existing gas grid. This would allow for value-added opportunities, in-state use and LNG export from the Valdez and Kenai terminals.
— Reuters
The delivery is likely part of a supply agreement under which Costa Azul terminal operator Sempra Energy will take up to 500 billion cubic feet of LNG from the BP-led Tangguh project for 20 years, with the option to divert some of these volumes to more attractive markets.
Costa Azul supplies natural gas to the United States via pipeline into the Southern Californian grid.
Deliveries from Tangguh to Costa Azul have been sporadic in recent months due to operational problems at Tangguh and low gas prices in Southern California, which have deterred shippers from sending much gas there.
Natural gas: Fuel of the future — CNN Money
"We've basically won the lottery," Michael Ming, president of Research Partnership to Secure Energy for America, an organization that studies new natural gas developments, said during a recent Time Inc. conference on energy technologies.
Can Shale Gas Go Green? — The Motley Fool
Investors in companies like Range Resources and Devon Energy need to keep an eye on the battle over hydraulic fracturing because the process underpins the natural gas boom that is reshaping the energy landscape. Just a few years ago, it looked like imports of liquefied natural gas (LNG) would be required to supply North American energy needs. Now, with the market so well supplied with domestic output, companies like Apache (NYSE: APA) are looking to secure LNG export capacity. Frac fluid -- the water, sand, and chemical mixture blasted into downhole formations to get the gas flowing out of tight sandstones and shales -- made this possible.
[T]he race by oil services companies to develop "green" -- i.e. nontoxic -- frac chemicals is well under way. A Bloomberg piece today highlights some efforts by Halliburton (NYSE: HAL) and Schlumberger (NYSE: SLB) to replace traditional biocides, which make up about 0.001% of a typical fracture fluid. Halliburton, for example, is attempting to use ultraviolet light to kill the bacteria that can muck up a gas well.
Goldman: Look how natural gas shares just follow whatever the latest gas price says — Business Insider, New York, NY
Daniel Boyd at Goldman: The bearish sentiment on natural gas is reaching a crescendo due to fears of chronic oversupply from the shales and LNG.
Factbox-North American LNG terminals and plants — Reuters India
NEW YORK, March 29 (Reuters) - Below is a list of North American
liquefied natural gas import terminals and export plants, including
projects that are proposed or under construction.
Listed are:
In Operation
Under Construction
Approved by FERC but not under construction
Approved by MARAD
Plus Mexican and Canadian approved terminals and proposed US terminals
US LNG import terminals (plus a Mexican and a Canadian LNG terminal that are each supplying natural gas to the US) are operating at a small fraction of capacity, some US import terminals are re-exporting can't find a US market for it, 3 additional US LNG import terminals are under construction
>>> 19 additional US LNG import terminals are already in the works <<<
Top (Mar 6) — Gloucester Daily Times, Gloucester, MA
"The tug is owned by Boston Towing & Transportation; the crews are also employed by them," explained Timothy White, the port director for Neptune GDF Suez, which maintains an office at 6 Rowe Square. "We (Neptune GDF Suez) charter the tug," he added. Neptune GDF Suez is a subsidiary of GDF Suez.
Neptune GDF Suez operates one of the offshore LNG terminals in Massachusetts Bay, where LNG tankers can offload their natural gas cargoes. Several Cape Ann fishermen already crew on other Boston Towing & Transportation tugs as well as on those of its parent company, Reinauer Companies of Staten Island in New York City.
"This is the first tug in the continental U.S. specifically designed for offshore LNG terminals," adds Carol Churchill, communication manager for GDF Suez in Boston.
LNG foes cheer Department of Transportation decision (Mar 26) — The Herald News, Fall River, MA
FALL RIVER — Leaders of the anti-LNG movement were very happy with a Department of Transportation ruling that would require Weaver’s Cove Energy to recalculate how far a possibly flammable cloud of escaped gas might travel.
The opinion, requested from the DOT by the city of Fall River, also states that the full length of a gas pipeline the company wants to build will be under DOT regulation.
“The DOT has now said that all of the project is subject to their siting regulations and that any [terminal-piping] exclusion zones will run the whole length of the pipeline, including where it comes on shore,” Torres said.
The statement from the DOT said Weaver’s Cove Energy’s method for calculating how far a gas cloud would travel are “impracticable” and requires the company to come up with new method of calculating, though the DOT does not specify a proper method. [Red, yellow & bold emphasis added.]
Guest opinion: Time for Hess to face reality: Withdraw LNG proposal (Mar 23) — The Herald News, Fall River, MA
Hess officials do not seem to be able to show strong leadership by acknowledging and adapting to the recent major economic developments and changes in gas energy markets —key structural changes that completely negate the requirements for and merits of their quest to import foreign-sourced liquid natural gas into Fall River by about 2015.
But most importantly, Hess officials won’t acknowledge and discuss their latest proposal in the context of the recent key changes in energy markets that negate their assertion that their imported LNG will reduce regional energy costs.
Here are some of the profound changes that negate the merits of Hess’ LNG proposal: The Energy Information Administration (the authoritative, independent analytical arm of the U.S. Department of Energy), in its updated 2009 Annual Energy Outlook is predicting significant surplus (up to 40 percent) natural gas supplies for the New England region for the next 20-plus years, primarily because:
— The Dagger, Baltimore, MD
We are sure you may have unanswered issues or questions concerning this proposed FERC/AES Project, for which FERC has ceased voluntary Public Outreach efforts.
Meeting dates:
BP target of U.S. safety probe (Mar 9) — UPI
BP North America has two weeks to respond to allegations of serious safety violations at a refinery in Ohio, U.S. safety regulators said.
OSHA inspectors said they found the potential for the release of flammable and explosive materials at the Ohio refinery exposed workers to serious risk of injury and death.
OSHA fined BP a record $87 million in October for safety violations that led to the 2005 explosion at a plant in Texas City, Texas, that killed 15 and injured 170. [Red emphasis added.]
(Mar) — Pipeline & Gas Journal, Houston, TX
IEP involved two separate components: the installation of four ambient air vaporization units and the construction of a natural gas liquids extraction facility. Trunkline LNG Company LLC, located in Lake Charles, LA, is the only LNG regasification terminal in North America to employ ambient air vaporization technology. Utilization of the AVUs will significantly improve fuel efficiency during the regasification process for Trunkline LNG’s customer, BG LNG Services. Additionally, the availability of a natural gas liquids extraction facility will provide BG with greater flexibility in sourcing its LNG supply. The Trunkline LNG terminal is fully contracted to BG through 2030.
(Mar 25) — LNG Law Blog
Cheniere Midstream Services, LLC and Sabine Pass LNG, L.P. have jointly requested that FERC waive pre-filing procedures for a proposed natural gas liquids (NGL) processing facility proposed for the Sabine Pass LNG terminal site. The NGL processing facility would be installed in two phases and have the capacity to process 1 Bcf/d of NGL. The facility would also have NGL storage tanks, truck loading facilities, and an NGL pipeline.
(Mar 26) — Alaska Journal of Commerce, Anchorage AK
"… [U]nless we do more drilling and the drilling is successful, the only viable option we have is importing LNG," [Petrotechnical managing partner Tom Walsh Walsh] said.
Industry officials said importing LNG would be expensive. [Bold red emphasis added.]
(Mar 26) — The Daily Astorian, Astoria, OR
Oregon LNG has withdrawn the penalty and damage charges it filed against the Port of Astoria in U.S. District Court, and the two parties are meeting with a judge today to begin working out their differences.
Shale gas the new green issue (Mar 27) — National Post, Don Mills, ON
Gas is dramatically cleaner than other fossil fuels and so much has been tapped in deep-shale formations in North America that it may eventually black out gasoline, nuclear and coal plants.
Canada has as much shale gas as the United States.
Natural gas from shale plays create 'new world' for energy industry (Mar 11) — The New York Times, New York, NY
Now the gas-laced rock has doubled the discovered gas resources of North America, providing 100 years of supply to a country that a few years ago was planning a host of new terminals to import liquefied natural gas , or LNG. Shale gas now accounts for 20 percent of the country's gas supply, up from 1 percent in 2000. [Red, yellow & bold emphasis added.]
When US shale gas revolution encounters LNG competition [Press release] (Mar 24) — (World Gas Intelligence) PFC Energy
This year we don't need LNG, but we are going to get it anyway," PFC Energy Senior Director Raoul Leblanc told the Washington Energy Policy Conference. Long-term commitments to pipeline gas and underground storage constraints mean Europe can't take much more LNG, while the US can.
(Mar 25) — LNG Law Blog
A team of natural gas market analysts with Barclays Capital released a report predicting that the United States will import 3 Bcf/d of LNG in 2010.
(Mar 26) — Neftgaz.ru, Russia
They reacted to a contraction of demand for outside gas in the biggest energy consumer because U.S. companies — using a new technology — began producing large amounts of shale gas , which was previously too expensive to extract. [Bold red emphasis added.]
Top It's a gas, gas, gas. . . USEPA's proposes GHG reporting from oil and gas facilities (Mar 24) — Environmental Law Resource
In addition to those 31 industries, USEPA is now proposing to collect emissions data from the oil and natural gas sector , industries that emit fluorinated gases, and from facilities that inject and store CO2 underground for the purposes of geologic sequestration or enhanced oil and gas recovery. In a move broader than expected, covered facilities include onshore petroleum and natural gas producers, offshore petroleum and natural gas producers, onshore natural gas processing, natural gas transmission, underground natural storage, liquefied natural gas (LNG) storage, LNG import and export facilities, and natural gas distribution facilities. Methane is the primary GHG emitted from oil and natural gas systems and is more than 20 times as potent as CO2 at warming the atmosphere. USEPA’s proposed rule sets the reporting threshold for methane at 1250 tons per year.
Moran: Weavers Cove has already lost [Op-ed column] (Mar 24) — The Herald News, Fall River, MA
In the end, even Leo voted against Leo, joining with his colleagues to withdraw the resolution from the table.
Let’s remember too that Mayor Will Flanagan, all the members of our state legislative delegation, our representatives in the U.S. House and Sen. John Kerry oppose the LNG project. I haven’t heard yet from our newest senator, Scott Brown. But even if he decides to support it, he could not single-handedly tow the project over the finish line. [Bold red emphasis added.]
Mass., R.I. congressmen want to empower states with new LNG bill (Mar 25) — The Herald News, Fall River, MA
The bill repeals a provision in the 2005 Energy bill that gave the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission the exclusive authority to site LNG facilities.
FERC does not currently seek adequate input from states in LNG siting reviews, and governors lack veto authority for onshore LNG terminals, despite having that authority for offshore terminals under the Deepwater Port Act, according to McGovern. Although states and localities face all the potential risks and impacts of [an] LNG facility , they lack an equal voice in the siting and approval process, McGovern said. Prior to the 2005 Energy Bill, such decisions had historically been made by siting agencies in each state.
R.I. lawmaker wants $1 million tolls for LNG tankers (Mar 23) — The Herald News, Fall River, MA
“I don’t know how we can make it any clearer to Weaver’s Cove and Hess LNG that this is not welcome here," said Gallison, D-Bristol. "Every city and town and practically every organization that has an interest in the bays, the environment or public safety in the area has come out to fight against this facility. If this is what it takes to shoot down this loathsome proposal, this is what I’ll do."
Under the legislation, the operator of each LNG vessel traveling through Rhode Island waters would have to pay $1 million per trip to each shoreline city and town it passes, both as the ship enters Rhode Island waters and as it exits : Newport, Jamestown, Middletown, Portsmouth, Bristol, Tiverton, and Warren.
On top of those fees, the tankers would be required to carry at least $1 billion in liability insurance, and post bonds for each transit under bridges along the route. The bonds would be $475 million for those going under the Pell Bridge and $225 million for those going under the Mount Hope Bridge.
(Mar 25) — Warwick Beacon, Warwick, RI
Bringing these tankers up Narragansett Bay on a regular basis is going to have a significant impact on the Bay, which is Rhode Island’s greatest natural resource.
Manatee County approves offshore Port Dolphin LNG facility (Mar 24) — Oil & Gas Journal
HOUSTON, Mar. 24 -- The Manatee County Port Authority Mar. 18 approved a long-term $30 million agreement with Port Dolphin Energy LLC for construction of an LNG port facility and pipeline off Florida. Port Dolphin is a subsidiary of Hoegh LNG, which operates a fleet of five LNG carriers. Port Dolphin will also base an operations center at Port Manatee.
The proposed project will consist of:
Regulator OKs Freeport LNG truck facility — The Facts, Clute, TX
QUINTANA — A federal regulator Thursday approved Freeport LNG’s request to build an 18-wheeler liquefied natural gas unloading facility at its terminal, but the town has a plan to keep the company from using it.
“I have no desire to watch an 18-wheeler full of LNG come across that bridge and watch it collapse and then try to justify to my citizens that I allowed that to happen,” [Mayor Wallace Neeley] said.
Residents also argued Freeport LNG’s emergency plan was weak and did not support the island’s population , especially during the summer beach season.
“[FERC's Commissioners] obviously don’t have any feelings whatsoever about the lives and safety of the people who live here,” [Councilman Harold Doty] said. “It’s a safety issue more than anything else.”
(Mar 25) — Forbes
El Paso Pipeline Partners said today it has agreed to buy a 51 percent state in both Southern LNG Company and El Paso Elba Express from El Paso Corporation for $810 million. El Paso Corporation will continue to own the remaining interests in the two companies.
— Oil & Gas Journal
The Elba Island terminal currently has 1.8 bcfd in sendout capacity and 7.3 bcf of storage capacity in 4 tanks. Expansion, set for commissioning this summer, will add 4.2 bcf of storage in a fifth tank.
Freeport LNG Development, L.P.; Application to amend blanket authorization to export liquefied natural gas (Mar 23) — Federal Register, US Government Printing Office, Washington, DC
The link below accesses a PDF file.
SUMMARY: The Office of Fossil Energy (FE ) of the Department of Energy (DOE) gives notice of receipt of an application filed on March 4, 2010, by Freeport LNG Development, L.P. (Freeport LNG), requesting an amendment to its blanket authorization to export liquefied natural gas (LNG) granted by DOE/FE on May 28, 2009, in DOE/FE Order No. 2644, and amended on September 22, 2009, in DOE/FE Order No. 2644–A. Freeport LNG seeks authorization to export foreign-sourced LNG from its Quintana Island, Texas facilities to any other country (in addition to those already specifically listed in DOE/FE Order No. 2644, as amended) with capacity to import LNG via ocean-going carrier and with which trade is not prohibited by U.S. law or policy.
Freeport LNG states that in DOE/FE Order No. 2644, which granted Freeport LNG blanket authorization to export up to 24 Bcf (cumulative) of previously imported foreign-sourced LNG, FE determined that there presently is no domestic reliance on the volumes of imported LNG that Freeport LNG would seek to export. Freeport LNG also states that most recently, FE made the same finding in granting ConocoPhillips blanket authority to export from the Freeport LNG Quintana Island terminal up to 500 Bcf of previously imported LNG.8 FE stated that ‘‘the record shows there is sufficient supply of natural gas to satisfy domestic demand from multiple other sources at competitive prices without drawing on the LNG which ConocoPhillips seeks to export * * *.’’
Freeport LNG states that Amendment of Freeport LNG’s short term blanket authorization as requested herein would provide Freeport LNG with the necessary flexibility it requires to respond to changes in domestic and global markets for natural gas and LNG. [Bold, red & yellow emphasis added.]
— Jamaica Observer, Kingston, Jamaica, West Indies
[BPTT chairman Robert Riley] said opportunities in the past for making easy money from natural gas were gone and 'we can no longer depend on the early advantages we had as first mover into the United States LNG market, as we are now facing serious challenges'.
'Trinidad and Tobago has already gone ahead of plans and expenditure patterns beyond what the gas industry and hydrocarbon industry can enable the country to sustain'.
(Mar 25) — Reuters UK
BPTT, a subsidiary of BP Plc (BP.L), is the largest natural gas producer in the country. Though Riley said there was enough gas in place to sustain BPTT's current contracts and obligations to 2025, he warned it could have a significant challenge on its hands over the next decade if it fails to make a successful new find, beyond the 12 offshore platforms where it currently operates.
(Mar 25) — (AP) JuneauEmpire.com, Juneau, AK
Port authority officials said the pending withdrawal won't disrupt efforts to truck natural gas to Fairbanks by 2012 or to build a gas pipeline from the North Slope to Valdez.
[Fairbanks borough mayor and a member of the port authority's board of directors Luke Hopkins] has been promoting the $250 million trucking project as a way to get gas from the North Slope more quickly as the pipeline project progresses. The project provides little benefit to North Slope Borough.
(Mar 25) — Daily News-Miner, Fairbanks, AK
The municipality’s reason for dropping out of the partnership is unclear, but port authority officials say the borough’s pending withdrawal has no impact on efforts to truck natural gas to Fairbanks by 2012 or to build a gas pipeline from the North Slope to Valdez.
(Mar 23) — Daily News-Miner, Fairbanks, AK
JUNEAU — The United States’ energy regulators would probably keep their hands off an in-state natural gas pipeline even if much of the gas goes to foreign markets, according to a report from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
The informal assessment means the state’s regulators would be left in charge of governing the pipeline. Jon Wellinghoff, chairman of FERC, wrote to Bob Swenson, Alaska’s in-state pipeline manager, March 15 that the analysis is tentative, as the full commission has yet to weigh in on the question.
Alaska LNG faces competition from overseas (Mar 24) — Alaska Dispatch, Anchorage, AK
"The biggest thing that Alaska could do, including the government, is kind of get off the idea that the Lower 48 actually needs Alaska gas ," said Jack Weixel, director of energy analysis for Colorado-based Bentek Energy, an energy market analysis firm. Instead of a pipeline to Canada, Weixel said, Alaska could start pushing a plan that looks to Asian LNG markets.
Massive reserves of shale gas in the Lower 48 could glut the nation's natural gas market in the near future, keeping prices low and rendering an Alaska pipeline uneconomic in the short term.
(Mar 24) — (AP) The Examiner, San Francisco, CA
JUNEAU, ALASKA — A new Alaska cooperative, the Natural Gas Supply Co., is offering to buy or help reinvent a liquefied natural gas plant near Kenai.
Alley, Bradbury, and Kitzhaber to debate environment (Mar 23) — Portland City Politics Examiner, Portland, OR
On March 30 comes the debate you’ve all been waiting for: three of the leading 2010 gubernatorial candidates, Republican Allen Alley and Democrats John Kitzhaber and Bill Bradbury, will be facing off at Portland State University in a debate on Oregon’s environmental future.
Bradbury … in November of last year … discussed environmental issues at length, including Liqufied Natural Gas (LNG) facilities, the production of which he said he “will fight tooth and nail” to halt , adding “I will chain my Segway to a LNG tanker if I have to.” This could be one potential point of contention at the debate between Bradbury and Alley , who, according to his campaign website’s section on energy infrastructure, is a supporter of LNG. [Red emphasis added.]
(Mar 23) — The Daily Astorian, Astoria, OR
The county's application approval, made in 2008, was challenged by the LNG opponent group Columbia Riverkeeper. Two items within the project's land-use application were remanded to Clatsop County for revision. The upcoming LUBA decision will determine whether the county responded adequately to the remand.
In its first ruling, LUBA found fault with Clatsop County's finding that the proposed Bradwood facility is "small or moderate" in scale and that requirements to protect salmon and traditional fishing areas had been met.
LNG plans fade away as supporters' arguments vanish [Op-ed column] (Mar 24) — Ventura County Star, Camarillo, CA
The California State Lands Commission has revoked NorthernStar’s application to convert an old oil platform off Ventura Harbor into an LNG import terminal. Thus dies the fifth and final LNG terminal proposed for California over the last decade.
The LNG people told us that America could not supply its own natural-gas needs. This was wrong, spectacularly wrong. It turns out advances in shale gas technology have turned the U.S. into the nation with the third-largest natural gas reserves in the world — behind Qatar and Russia. Pennsylvania has more natural gas than Saudi Arabia. North America companies are actually going to export LNG, through Canada, to China. [Red, yellow & bold emphasis added.]
Low volatility in US gas prices frustrates traders — The Peninsula, Doha, Qatar
Drillers have unlocked vast new shale reserves and with the cost of production below the current $4 per million British thermal unit gas price, they keep adding to supply. A harsh winter also depleted reservoirs that were packed with a record 3,837bn cubic feet of gas late last year. This makes it less likely that the US will run out of storage capacity after this year’s refill season, which probably starts this month. In 2009, fears of a capacity crunch drove prices to seven-year lows.
Putin lobbies for strong gas cartel (Mar 25) — UPI
Russian Energy Minister Sergei Shmatko said operations of the GECF could go into full swing this year.
Top Partnership could produce enormous amount of gas: analyst (Mar 20) — New Brunswick Business Journal, Saint John, NB
Greg Chornoboy, an analyst with Jennings Capital Inc., says the drilling partnership could produce up to six trillion cubic feet of natural gas - an "enormous amount of gas ," he said. [Bold red emphasis added.]
Corridor partner to drill in N.B. in June (Mar 20) — Chronicle-Herald, Halifax, NS
Preliminary estimates suggest the Frederick Brook shale formation has the potential to hold a massive quantity of gas. If the drill program this year supports that theory, Miller said, a much larger development would be established. [Bold red emphasis added.]
Bentek: Marcellus Shale production poised to disrupt U.S. natural gas market — The Earth Times
“Recent pipeline projects such as the Rockies Express, Gulf Crossing, Midcontinent Express and others, have helped alleviate the long-standing pipeline capacity constraints and have worked to reduce price differentials by increasing relative prices in the West while reducing prices in eastern markets.”
“Now the Marcellus – the Beast in the East – is poised to create further market disruptions as natural gas production from the Appalachian Basin expands from 2.2 Bcf/d last year to somewhere between 4.0 and 6.0 Bcf/d by 2014, ” Braziel said. “More than 30 gas pipeline expansion projects have been announced to support this growth in the Northeast, representing the addition of more than 12 Bcf/d of new gathering, short-haul and long-haul pipeline transportation capacity and pipeline interconnections in the region.”
Northeast price premiums – one of the last bastions of relatively high prices – are expected to shrink as multiple new pipelines relieve regional transportation constraints. Price spreads to the Northeast from western Canada, the Rocky Mountains and the Southeast/Gulf are expected to tighten. “As a result, natural gas markets will be on a more level playing field from coast to coast,” Braziel said.
[C]ontinued growth in domestic shale gas production can be expected to significantly reduce the need for Canadian and LNG imports. [Red, yellow & bold emphasis added.]
BEP will assume jurisdiction over Calais LNG proposal (Mar 18) — WQDY-FM, Calais, ME
Local LNG supporters including the Calais City Council had urged the Department of Environmental Protection to assume jurisdiction for the project.
But following a March 18 vote, the BEP will be assuming jurisdiction. A public hearing on the project is anticipated this summer.
— Providence Business News, Providence, RI [Paid subscription required]
An interview with Gordon Shearer, president and CEO of Hess LNG, which wants to construct an offshore LNG terminal in Mount Hope Bay.
— The Herald News, Fall River, MA
There’s a reason that the Rhode Island Marine Trades Association, Newport Chamber of Commerce, Newport & Bristol Convention & Visitors Bureau, the cities of Bristol, Newport and Fall River are opposed to this project.
[N]atural gas is being recovered from the recently found Marcellus shale deposits, one of the largest in the world, in New York and Pennsylvania. This increase in domestic natural gas production will decrease all LNG imports in the northeast.
Weaver’s Cove LNG must be completed [Editorial] (Mar 22) — Providence Business News, Providence, RI [Paid subscription required]
Eight years into the proposed Weaver’s Cove Energy LLC liquefied natural gas terminal, the project remains a blip on the region’s energy horizon.
Group asks court to block AES' natural gas terminal (Mar 20) — The Baltimore Sun, Baltimore, MD
In a lawsuit filed electronically Friday, the community group that calls itself the LNG Opposition Team is asking the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia to order federal regulators to rescind a permit issued a year ago to AES Sparrows Point LNG.
Fisher said he will argue that the project is unnecessary, given declining demand for natural gas and the underuse of existing terminals , and that it would threaten public safety. [Red & yellow emphasis added.]
— LNG Law Blog
The U.S. Maritime Administration (MARAD) has issued its Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (FSEIS) for the TORP Bienville LNG deepwater port project. MARAD also announced in the Federal Register that it will host a public meeting on the project in Mobile, Ala., on March 31, 2010.
— Zibb
The Maritime Administration, in cooperation with the U.S. Coast Guard, announces the availability of the Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (FSEIS) for the TORP Terminal LP, Bienville Offshore Energy Terminal (BOET) Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Deepwater Port amended license application.
The public meeting will be held in Mobile, Alabama on March 31, 2010, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., and will be preceded by an open house from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m.
The Draft and Final Supplemental EIS, the amended application, comments and associated documentation are available for viewing at the Federal Docket Management System (FDMS) Web site: http://www.regulations.gov under docket number USCG-2006-24644.
TORP Terminal LP proposes to own, construct, and operate a deepwater port, the Bienville Offshore Energy Terminal (BOET), in the Federal waters of the Outer Continental Shelf on Main Pass block MP 258, located approximately 63 miles south of Mobile Point, Alabama, in a water depth of approximately 425 feet. The proposed BOET deepwater port would be capable of mooring a single LNG carrier (LNGC) of up to approximately 265,000 cubic meters (m3) (8.8 million cubic feet [ft3]) in capacity.
— Daily News-Miner, Fairbanks, AK
[I]f the oil companies don’t invest billions over the next decade to develop more gas supplies in Cook Inlet, imported gas may be needed by 2013, according to the report from Petrochemical Resources of Alaska.
But they won’t invest up to $3 billion unless they can make a profit, which means raising rates.
Alaska would likely self-manage bullet gas line — Daily News-Miner, Fairbanks, AK
[N]o one in Juneau is talking about that option--export of liquefied natural gas to other domestic states--given reports of expanding gas production in other states. Supporters of the in-state pipeline option have instead zeroed in on international export from the Cook Inlet area as a more likely scenario.
— Oil & Gas Journal
HOUSTON, Mar. 22 -- The US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission said Mar. 19 it would not, under most circumstances contemplated by Alaska’s In-State Gas Team, have jurisdiction over an eventual in-state pipeline.
In Scenario 3, a portion of the gas also would proceed to Kenai LNG, but with the potential for at least some of it to be shipped to US customers if an LNG receiving terminal were constructed on the US West Coast. FERC stated that the fact that some of the gas in Scenario 3 might be transported in interstate commerce could result in the proposed in-state line becoming fully subject to the agency’s jurisdiction.
(Mar 18) — US Senator Lisa Murkowski, AK
"This kind of activity in the Arctic, combined with declining summer sea ice, has positive implications for energy security across borders, because LNG and oil tankers will in some cases be able to have alternatives to their current, more dangerous and clogged routes through South-East Asian straits and the Gulf of Aden and of course the Suez Canal. So non-Arctic nations are going to benefit in this way, but can also benefit through the funding element of these huge projects. The exploration, the production, and certainly the construction necessary to develop Arctic resources is going to require all types of financing not just for the sheer scale and remoteness of the projects, but for the levels of technology needed to bring them online in a way that's safe for workers, safe for the environment, and as insulated from risk as possible.
"We now have reports that a Russian shipping firm has announced that it will use one of its ice strengthened arctic tankers to carry oil from the Kara Sea across the Northern Sea Route to Japan this year. This would be a proof of concept that could also apply to LNG tankers based on the same dual-acting icebreaker-tanker design used for the oil tanker.
(Mar 19) — The Daily Astorian, Astoria, OR
The Port of Astoria Commission voted 4-0 with Commission President Bill Hunsinger abstaining to notify Oregon Department of State Lands of its intent to exercise a 30-year renewal option on its lease of land in Warrenton for the Oregon LNG liquefied natural gas terminal.
(Mar 20) — Yamhill Valley News-Register, McMinnville, OR
In a rare show of unanimity Wednesday, Yamhill County's board of commissioners became the third in Oregon to pass a resolution opposing the piping of liquefied natural gas through their land.
Yamhill County doesn't want natural gas pipelines running through its farmland without good cause, and that good cause - an explicit public need for imported gas supplies - has yet to be demonstrated to the commissioners' satisfaction.
Commissioner Leslie Lewis picked up on [the lack of need] at Wednesday's meeting and hit it hard. If there's no need for LNG, she said, why should the county allow companies to tear up good farmland to bring it in? [Bold red emphasis added.]
Natural gas declines to six-month low on mild weather, surplus — BusinessWeek
March 22 (Bloomberg) -- Natural gas futures fell to the lowest price in almost six months on concern mild weather will allow stockpiles to begin an annual period of increases earlier than normal this year, creating a supply glut later this year.
The number of gas rigs working in the U.S. rose by 12 to 939 last week, the highest level since Feb. 27, 2009 , according to Baker Hughes Inc. The total represents an increase of 41 percent from a seven-year low in July. An increase in rigs indicates output from gas fields may gain later this year.
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Board takes jurisdiction over proposed LNG project — Maine Public Broadcasting Network (MPBN )
Maine's Board of Environmental Protection has agreed to hold a public hearing on the project that Calais LNG is proposing for Washington County.
"At a time when Maine should be focused on realistic solutions to its energy and economic challenges, this proposed project is neither realistic, nor a solution," the current glut of natural gas significant increase in domestic sources of natural gas projected lack of any increased demand for gas
Environmental board takes jurisdiction over proposed LNG terminal — Maine Public Broadcasting Network (MPBN )
"The board found that the project met the standard for board jurisdiction, namely that it is a project of substantial public interest
"The environmental impacts associated with the project are adverse," lack of any need for the project from the perspective of our energy picture, or the inconsistency with Maine's energy goals
John Shannon: Hess should accept reality and quit [Opinion column] — The Providence Journal, Providence, RI
…Hess officials won’t acknowledge and discuss their latest proposal in the context of the recent key changes in energy markets that negate their assertion that their imported LNG would reduce regional energy costs. Because of these changes, there is now no valid requirement (if there ever was one) for importing LNG into southeastern New England , particularly not through the environmentally sensitive Narragansett and Mount Hope bays. If they were genuinely interested in embracing these new economic realities, Hess officials would withdraw their highly controversial proposal.
Here are some of the profound changes that negate the merits of Hess’s LNG proposal. The Energy Information Administration (the authoritative, independent analytical arm of the U.S. Department of Energy), in its updated 2009 Annual Energy Outlook (April 2009), predicts significant surplus (up to 40 percent natural-gas supplies for New England region for the next 20-plus years) primarily because domestic natural gas is being economically recovered
Pipeline companies are rapidly expanding infrastructure to carry this gas to New England.
The existing LNG facilities in New England have been, and continue to be, substantially underused.
Newport Chamber opposes LNG plan — The Providence Journal, Providence, RI
The directors of the Newport County Chamber of Commerce voted unanimously to object to a plan from Hess Corp. to build a liquefied natural gas berth in Mount Hope Bay [Weaver's Cove Energy].
The Chamber said findings of the study, titled “LNG Transit through East Passage: Potential Impact on Aquidneck Island Development,” are valid now as the number of vessel transits are the same as in the first Hess proposal. The proposal would also have an unforeseeable impact on other economic systems and future projects within Narragansett Bay, the Chamber said.
— UPI
Tankers carrying liquefied natural gas would arrive at an offshore facility operated by Port Dolphin. A new underwater pipeline system would connect to onshore facilities at Port Manatee. [Bold red emphasis added.]
— Bradenton.com, Bradenton, FL
Port Dolphin Energy, a Delaware-based company, has been working on plan since 2007 to build a deep-water port about 28 miles off Anna Maria Island for ships transporting liquefied natural gas, or LNG.
Once Port Manatee was picked, one of the things that impressed Castro was the port authority board putting environmental concerns over the financial issues. [Bold & red emphasis added.]
— OilOnline, Houston, TX
Port Dolphin is awaiting final regulatory clearance for the installation of an offshore LNG terminal 28 miles off the coast of Tampa.
Port Dolphin construction is expected to begin in 2012 with completion the following year. The installation will have a peak capacity of 1.2 bcf/d, which, developers say, is enough gas to meet 15% of Florida's energy demand. The project will accommodate two shuttle and regasification vessels (SRVs) using a submerged turret loading system and buoys located about three miles apart. Daily throughput at startup is expected to be about 400 mmcf/d and increase to a daily average of 800 mmcf/d. [Bold & red emphasis added.]
(Mar 18) — LNG Law Blog
FERC announced [Wednesday] that it will conduct its annual post-certification reviews of the EcoElectrica [Puerto Rico] and Cameron LNG [Louisiana] import facilities.
— Jamaica Observer, Kingston, Jamaica, West Indies
MANDEVILLE, Manchester -- Energy and Mining Minister James Robertson says that within four weeks, Government will "turn another corner" in the drive to replace heavy fossil fuels with liquefied natural gas (LNG) as the main generating source for electricity in an effort to lower electricity and productivity costs for Jamaica.
— Alaska Journal of Commerce
The LNG export license for the Kenai plant expires March 2011 and so far no application for a renewal of the permit has been made by ConocoPhillips and Marathon.
State and local officials are concerned that if the export license is not renewed, the companies may close the plant, which now plays a vital role in helping utilities meet mid-winter gas deliverability needs, Heinze told the Senate Resources Committee.
— Alaska Journal of Commerce
Former Alaska U.S. Senator Ted Stevens, long a cheerleader for a natural gas pipeline from Alaska across Canada to the U.S. Midwest, says he now believes that project is doomed by large U.S. shale gas discoveries.
[Red & yellow emphasis added.]
(Week of Mar 21) — Petroleum News
In a major change of heart since leaving office, former U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens now thinks that LNG exports into the Pacific Rim from Alaska present the optimum solution for bringing North Slope gas to market.
Stevens has in the past been a proponent of a pipeline route through Canada to supply natural gas to the Lower 48, but says that the world natural gas supply and demand situation has changed dramatically in recent years, thus favoring the LNG export route.
[Red & yellow emphasis added.]
— The Daily Astorian, Astoria, OR [Paid subscription required]
On Tuesday, the Port Commission met and discussed the order. Port Commissioner Dan Hess made a motion to renew the state lease for 30 years and Commissioner Larry Pfund backed him, but the motion was tabled for an executive session and later withdrawn. Commissioners said they were waiting to see the outcome of Thursday's conference with the judge to decide on their next move.
In their latest filing with the court - a 15-page argument for why the Port leaders should be held in contempt - attorney Kelly Corr of the Seattle law firm Davis Wright Tremain accuses the commissioners of "dilatory and contumacious conduct" and goes on to describe in detail the sequence of events from Tuesday's Commission meeting. Corr noted that nearly a year has passed since the company renewed its 30-year sublease with the Port, and the agency continues to resist signing onto a parallel 30-year renewal of the underlying master lease with Oregon Department of State Lands.
Top One nation over gas: A gasified U.S. economy — iStock Analyst
"North America now has an unforeseen surfeit of natural gas. The United States has enough gas under its soil to inspire dreams of self-sufficiency.
Shale gas vies with oil and liquids for attention (Mar 3) —Platts [Paid subscription only]
The jump in [natural gas well] production
Shale gas to boost Europe's energy security (Mar 16) — Sharenet, Cape Town, South Africa
North America's lost appetite for LNG
Refile-Update 2-Algeria to ask gas exporters to cut supply (Mar 16) — Reuters Africa
With U.S. demand for imported gas likely to remain subdued
'Shale gale' creates new uncertainty for Alaska natural gas projects — Daily News-Miner, Fairbanks, AK
A new study by Cambridge Energy Research Associates says that it wasn’t until last summer that the enormous potential of shale gas entered the mainstream political discussion.
One of the uncertainties is the degree of national political opposition. If a gas glut exists in the Lower 48, exporters would have an easier time winning support for shipping Alaska gas to Asia. [Red & yellow emphasis added.]
ConocoPhillips sees bright days ahead for Lower 48 natural gas industry (Mar 16) — Daily News-Miner, Fairbanks, AK
In his remarks, [chairman and CEO of ConocoPhillips Jim Mulva] talked about the “rebirth of a once-dying industry,” referring to the reversal of fortunes for the natural gas business in the Lower 48.
Mulva said that natural gas consumption peaked in the U.S. nearly 40 years ago, but now production is rising, prices are down, reserves and growing and “we foresee a century of domestic supply.”
Mulva, speaking to the Cambridge Energy Research Associates conference, said some experts see the day when the U.S. will become a major exporter of liquefied natural gas. [Red, yellow & bold emphasis added.]
'Shale creates uncertainty' (Mar 16) — UpstreamOnline
Statoil's prospects to sell liquefied natural gas have been hit by the growth of shale gas in the US, which is drastically cutting the country's reliance on [LNG-source] gas imports.
Asked whether Statoil would have built Snoehvit given the fall in US demand for gas , Michelsen said: "The decision to build Snoehvit was sanctioned at a time when there was a lot of optimism about LNG all over the world." [Red, yellow & bold emphasis added.]
India's richest man dying for a piece of the U.S. shale gas revolution — Business Insider, New York, NY
Barring some kind of ridiculous environmental blockages, cheap U.S. shale gas is coming. major investors know it, ranging from energy majors to foreign tycoons. Yet we doubt the market hasn't fully recognized the vast implications this will have for U.S. energy a few years forward. Take the spill-over effects into the chemical industry we highlighted, for example. [Red, yellow & bold emphasis added.]
FERC issues Environmental Information Request to Calais LNG — LNG Law Blog
Yesterday, FERC issued an environmental information request to Calais LNG regarding a wide range of topics including the proposed LNG vessel route, potential effects on water and other natural resources, and cultural and socioeconomic impacts of the project.
LNG sides fight over jurisdiction issue (Mar 12) — The Quoddy Tides, Eastport, ME
Littell says that he will inform the board at its meeting that he has concluded that there is substantial public interest in the project. Also, although those favoring the department's retaining jurisdiction believe it would expedite the evaluation, Littell writes that "the timing of evaluation and decision-making on the pending applications will be generally consistent whether the board or the commissioner have original jurisdiction." [Red emphasis added.]
Council unanimous on Lightolier, LNG decisions (Mar 16) — The Herald News, Fall River, MA
For the second time in almost exactly one year, City Councilor Leo Pelletier lit the match that filled the council chambers.
His reintroduced controversial resolution asked that Weaver’s Cove Energy be allowed an audience to discuss its $700 million liquefied natural gas terminal and offshore berth proposal before a council subcommittee.
Pelletier, who will soon become the longest-serving councilor in city history, drew no support from his colleagues to entertain this debate, just like a year ago.
“I will not sell my soul, even in these economic times,” [Somerset Selectman Lorne Lawless] said.
Ultimately, councilors voted 9-0 — with Pelletier actually joining in — to remove his resolution from the table, meaning it can’t come back for another year.
[Red & yellow emphasis added.]
Sure it's about money, but LNG is also good sense, says CEO (Mar 16) — Warwick Beacon, Warwick, RI
In order to build the offshore terminal that would be connected to a 200,000 cubic meter storage tank in Fall River by a 4.5 mile buried pipeline, a channel and turning basin for the tankers would have to be dredged. The tankers would carry about 150,000 cubic meters of LNG. Most of the LNG imported into the US is supplied by Trinidad, but other potential supply sources include Norway, Algeria, Nigeria, Egypt, Qatar, Equatorial Guinea, Russia, Oman and Abu Dhabi.
It has been eight years since Hess first proposed a tanker-supplied LNG terminal in Fall River. The project has gone through various iterations and the company opted for the offshore terminal after designation of the Taunton River as a wild and scenic stream and the historic designation of the Brightman Street Bridge halted plans for a land-based terminal. It is now seeking Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approval for its amended plan. The agency is conducting an environmental impact statement that Save the Bay believes will be released this spring.
(Mar 18) — The Independent, Freehold, NJ
The Bayshore Regional Watershed Council and Clean Ocean Action (COA) are encouraging residents to write letters to the governor and local elected officials to oppose the LNG plans.
Both groups are saying LNG would industrialize the Raritan-Hudson estuary and increase dependency on foreign [fuel].
“We have enough natural gas in North America in the United States. We don’t really need LNG. There is no need for it.”
— Reuters UK
The Seri Angkasa tanker [from Egypt] was last seen on Wednesday nearing the terminal, the data showed. It is expected to be one of about five cargoes heading there this month.
[T]he Celestine River tanker was seen heading toward the U.S. Elba Island terminal in Georgia from Trinidad, expected on March 24, according to AIS.
The SCF Polar tanker arrived at the Everett terminal in Boston on Tuesday.
(Mar 15) — LNG Law Blog
Lawyers for Washington Gas Light (WGL), FERC and Dominion presented oral arguments over the Cove Point LNG terminal Expansion Project to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. WGL argued that the Expansion Project would increase flows of regasified LNG on WGL's distribution system, and those flows could cause damage to their equipment. FERC responded by emphasizing that it appropriately and thoroughly addressed WGL's safety concerns.
(Mar 15) — SNL, Charlottesville, VA
The project involved two separate components: the installation of four ambient air vaporization units and the construction of a natural gas liquids extraction facility. Trunkline LNG Co. LLC's facility, located in Lake Charles, La., is the only LNG regasification terminal in North America to use ambient air vaporization technology, which will significantly improve fuel efficiency during the regasification process for Trunkline LNG's customer, BG LNG Services LLC, the company said. [Red & bold emphasis added.]
— LNG Law Blog
Platts LNG Daily [subscription required] reports that a cooperative of Alaskan utilities has offered to purchase all or part of the Kenai LNG liquefaction facility. The Alaskan Natural Gas Development Authority told the Alaskan Senate this week that the utilities are concerned that the facility will close if current Kenai LNG facility owners ConocoPhillips and Marathon Oil are not permitted to renew their LNG export licenses.
Comment on Bradwood Landing LNG project focuses on fish entrainment in LNG vessel ballast systems — LNG Law Blog
A local Washington resident and shipping engineer filed comments with FERC urging the Commission to hold Bradwood Landing LNG import project developers, NorthernStar Natural Gas, responsible for environmental effects that the operations of LNG vessels [would] cause while docking or undocking at the facility. The comments focus specifically on the likelihood of fish entrainment in an LNG vessel's ballast system when the ship uses its bow or stern thrusters.
[Red, yellow & bold emphasis added.]
— The Daily Astorian, Astoria, OR [Paid subscription required]
Hess made a motion at the Tuesday meeting "to sign the damn lease so we can move on."
[Portland law firm Landye Bennett Blumstein attorney Thane Tienson] assured commissioners the company's attorneys can't charge the Port any money. Only a judge can impose damages and legal fees upon the Port, and the judge has not done that, he said.
Oregon LNG renewed its sublease for a 30-year term last year, but the Port didn't renew its master lease with the state for a parallel 30 years, in part because of a state investigation into official misconduct by former Port director Peter Gearin leading up to the lease deal. Instead, the Port signed a two-year extension of the initial five-year lease term with the state. Oregon LNG proceeded to sue the Port for a breach of contract because the master lease wasn't renewed for a 30-year term.
Last year, Port commissioners realized that the Port might actually own the land at the Skipanon site and that the language in the master lease and sublease could create some major problems for the agency long-term - especially if Oregon LNG doesn't get the permits to build an LNG facility in Warrenton.
If the Port agrees to a 30-year renewal of the state lease, it would be responsible for making the $38,400 annual payment on the land even if the company bails on its project.
Proposed LNG terminal off Oxnard terminated by state commission (Mar 16) — Ventura County Star, Camarillo, CA
The California State Lands Commission terminated Clearwater Port’s bid to build a liquefied natural gas terminal off Oxnard’s shores after the company abandoned its application.
State drops offshore natural gas terminal project — Daily Sound, Santa Barbara, CA
After the State Lands Commission and U.S. Coast Guard suspended the application in 2007, asking for more information on hundreds of “data gaps,” the company failed to respond. As a result, Environmental Defense Center and Santa Barbara Channelkeeper asked state officials to drop the project.
— CBC News
"The competing issue is the elephant in the room," he said, and that is that prices for natural gas have been heading "sharply down" since early January.
Top U.S. regulators bound to gather more input - Mar. 12, 2010 — The Saint Croix Courier, St. Stephen, NB
Doer pointed out in his letter that in the draft environmental impact statement issued by FERC for Downeast LNG it was noted the passage of LNG tankers in the region requires the collaboration of the government of Canada.
— It's Getting Hot In Here
There’s a big difference between a straight up natural gas plant and an LNG plant. The reason the natural gas is liquefied is because we have to transport it from quite a ways.
Not only does this undercut the carbon emissions argument, but it’s a terrible strategy for energy independence! As I showed in a post last June, because of the long transportation distance, LNG’s emissions are barely lower than coal. Certainly not by the amount the Trades Council was claiming…
Stevens calls for trans-Alaska gas pipeline, exports to Pacific Rim (Mar 14) — Daily News Miner, Fairbanks, AK
For decades Stevens has said that the route through Canada was the best option to get Alaska gas to market, but no more. The economics have shifted because of the shale gas boom in the Lower 48 and the heavy demand in Asia for liquefied natural gas shipped by tanker, he said.
He presented a series of charts showing forecasts for a continual growth in domestic U.S. gas production and a growing need in Asia. [Red & yellow emphasis added.]
Stevens shocks crowd, changing pipeline position (Mar 12) — KTVA, Anchorage, AK
Meaning the former senator wants the state to invest half the money upfront for an in-state line built from the North Slope to Fairbanks, then split with a bullet line to the Kenai Peninsula to supply Alaskans with gas. The other line to Valdez would ship liquefied natural gas, or LNG, over to Asian markets. [Red & yellow emphasis added.]
(Mar 14) — The World, Coos Bay, OR
Oregon LNG, a liquefied natural gas development company, filed a breach of contract lawsuit against the Port last year, attempting to force the agency to sign a 30-year renewal of the master lease at the LNG project site on Warrenton’s Skipanon Peninsula. The Port leases the land from the state and subleases it to Oregon LNG.
North American futures: Canadian and U.S. perspectives (Mar 12) — Berkeley-British Columbia Symposium, Berkeley, CA
North American Futures: Canadian – US Perspectives is a two day bi-national conference for private and public sector practitioners and scholars interested in the issues driving the North American, Canada – U.S. relationship.
The conference takes place Friday and Saturday, March 12 – 13, 2010, at the new David Brower Center, located in downtown Berkeley, California. It will be webcast on webcast.berkeley.edu and televised on UC-TV. Over the course of two days the conference will hear from experts and conduct panels in the following key areas:
— Bloomberg
LNG imports by the U.S. may almost double in 2010 to 2.2 billion cubic feet a day from an average 1.2 billion in 2009, JPMorgan said. That compares with a five-year average of 1.5 billion and 2008’s average of 1 billion.
“Based on rig activity and forecasts for exploration and production growth, the natural gas market appears to be well oversupplied again in 2010 ,” Allman said. In 2009, the U.S. natural gas market was oversupplied by about 3 billion cubic feet a day , a little less than LNG imports in 2009 by South Korea, the world’s second biggest LNG buyer.
Natural gas basis pricing [Blog] (Mar 8) — EnergyBloggers.com
A short course on how natural gas is priced.
On a national scale in the United States of America, the pricing and trading of natural gas happens at various locations.
Given the different options to pricing natural gas, different countries in the world have different prices.
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IEA official says increased LNG imports to United States unlikely (Mar 11) — LNG Law Blog
Speaking at CERA Week in Houston, Nobuo Tanaka, executive director for the International Energy Agency, said that North American shale gas plays are likely to limit LNG imports to the U.S. market. [Red, yellow & bold emphasis added.]
(Mar 11) — The Economist, London, England, UK
[I]f it makes it past the planning stages, Kitimat LNG [export terminal] will be one of the continent’s most significant energy developments in decades.
Now North America has an unforeseen surfeit of natural gas. The United States’ purchases of LNG have dwindled. It has enough gas under its soil to inspire dreams of self-sufficiency.
America is still taking some of this LNG, but the exporters’ bonanza is over before it ever really began.
…Qatar, the world’s LNG powerhouse, spent the past decade ramping up supplies aimed at the American market. That now looks like a blunder. [Red, yellow & bold emphasis added.]
A gas future beyond US (Mar 11) — Upstream Online
A glut of unconventional natural gas supplies from US shale deposits has fundamentally recast the long-term prospects for liquefied natural gas imports that were once considered the linchpin of the nation's energy security, industry executives said at the Ceraweek conference in Houston.
US natural gas reserves are up by a third since 2006, thanks to unconventional gas development including shale gas, with estimated reserves sufficient to supply the US market for nearly 100 years at current rates.
Energy: A foot on the gas (Mar 11) — Financial Times, London, England, UK
A surge in US production has meant that within three years the world has gone from running out of natural gas to being drowned in it.
The implications are profound. Policymakers have faced a trilemma: how to make energy supplies secure, affordable and clean. Now an abundance of gas appears to provide the answer to all three problems at once. In the words of Tony Hayward, chief executive of BP, it is a “game changer” – certainly for America , and quite possibly for the world.
Scepticism about the gas revolution is understandable because change has come so fast. Until five years ago, US policymakers and energy executives were fretting about securing enough gas to make up for the decline in the country’s own, sizable production. This year, the US has overtaken Russia to become the world’s biggest gas producer for the first time in nearly a decade. Technical breakthroughs that allow companies to tap gas trapped in its vast shale reserves, until recently considered impervious, have allowed it to shut its doors to imports from distant countries. The industry now thinks it can produce from those reserves for 100 years.
[Red & yellow emphasis added.]
Update:CERA Week:US power cos may be forced to embrace shale-gas boom (Mar 11) — (Dow Jones) Capital.gr, Greece
Natural gas prices plunged last year, reaching their lowest level in more than seven years, as producers unlocked vast new supplies of the fuel from dense, natural gas-rich rock formations known as shales. The new supplies created a glut of gas, boosting U.S. gas stockpiles to an all-time high in November.
[Red & yellow emphasis added.]
Shale technology boom spurs revolution in gas market — The Peninsula, Doha, Qatar
Houston: A gas market revolution is brewing as extraction technologies on underground rock boost production in North America, where reserves are now seen supplying more than a century of demand.
Although in 2000 gas shale technology only represented 1.0 percent of US natural gas production, today it accounts for 20 percent and could surpass 50 percent by 2030 [Red, yellow & bold emphasis added.]
Risk/reward profile for natural gas is improving — Benzinga.com, Dover, DE
According to Goldman Sachs , the risk/reward profile for natural gas is improving “following the pullback in recent weeks. The analysts say, "(1) we expect a potential demand pickup at the expense of coal if prices fall from here; (2) we continue to expect below-consensus LNG imports
Editorial: Good day for LNG — The Providence Journal, Providence, RI
Gordon Shearer, the head of Weaver’s Cove Energy, did a fine job on Tuesday in defending the $700 million liquefied-natural-gas terminal proposed for Fall River, a project that he and we agree would help lower our region’s now very high electricity and other energy costs.
[Editorial] (Mar 11) — The Daily Record, Baltimore, MD
This is not a case of “not in my backyard.” Maryland already has one of the nation’s largest LNG import facilities — Dominion Cove Point in Calvert County — which opened in 2003 and was expanded by 80 percent in 2009, all with the support of state and local authorities.
In the case of the proposed Sparrows Point terminal, state and local opposition seems to be entirely justified. But as federal law is now written, the state is virtually powerless .
— LNG Law Blog
Yesterday FERC granted Trunkline LNG's request to place its Infrastructure Enhancement Project into full service.
(Mar 11) — LNG Law Blog
The CEO of RasGas told the Wall Street Journal [subscription required] at CERA Week that he expects the first LNG cargo to be delivered to the Golden Pass LNG terminal within a "September time frame."
(Mar 11) — The Hill, Washington, DC
The Senate on Wednesday confirmed Larry Persily to head a federal office tasked with pushing forward a long-planned – and long-delayed – pipeline project to bring large natural gas supplies from Alaska’s North Slope to markets in the lower 48 states.
— The Hillsboro Argus, Hillsboro, OR
OCAP, Oregon Citizens Against Pipelines, meeting is 6:30 p.m. Thursday, March 18, at the Forest Grove Fire Station. Plan to attend this informative meeting to hear the updates on the proposed LNG terminals on the Columbia River and at Waranton on the northern Oregon Coast, along with pipelines cutting through our forests, farmland, private property, streams and rivers.
— LNG Law Blog
Judge Michael Mosman of the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon has adopted a federal magistrate's recommendation to grant a preliminary injunction in a contract dispute between Oregon LNG and the Port of Astoria. Judge Mosman's order requires the Port to "take immediate steps to provide the additional thirty-year term specified" under the contract and make the land at issue available to Oregon LNG.
(Mar 11) — The Oregonian, Portland, OR
The decision by the U.S. District Court judge confirmed a November recommendation by a magistrate judge that Astoria's Port should extend both Oregon LNG's sublease and its lease with the Department of State Lands for three decades, despite the Port's concerns about getting locked into a 30-year deal if the terminal isn't built.The Port can appeal the decision to the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court.
(Mar 11) — The Daily Astorian, Astoria, OR
Also on Thursday, Oregon LNG's attorney sent a letter to the Port's attorney putting the agency on notice that the company plans to file a motion for civil contempt against the Port and its commissioners unless they immediately renew the master lease.
Oregon LNG CEO Peter Hansen said his company has spent more than $500,000 in attorney fees on the breach of contract suit and will be asking the Port to repay that money in addition to millions of dollars in damages.
(Mar 11) — LNG Law Blog
FERC has scheduled three public meetings on April 20, 21, and 22, 2010, to hear testimony regarding the Oregon Pipeline, a pipeline associated with the planned Oregon LNG import terminal.
(Mar 11) — Seeking Alpha
The Potential Gas Committee (PGC) arrived at similar figures. The 100 year figure originates from their latest report. The PGC figures say nothing about when and at what cost natural gas resources will be produced.
There is a world of difference between proved reserves and probable, possible & speculative resources.
Top Mayor tells FERC "city desperately needs" Calais LNG project (Mar 9) — WQDY-FM, Calais, ME
"The few who oppose, most of whom are Canadian, do so on grounds unrelated to legitimate safety, environmental, or other aesthetic concerns."
— The Providence Journal, Providence, RI
[Weaver's Cove CEO Gordon Shearer] … said no study he has ever heard of supports numerous claims that the LNG would explode on contact with water or create flammable vapor clouds traveling for miles.
When Levesque interrupted and asked who made that assertion, Shearer said, “The attorney general.”
"RPT" is the term for "rapid phase transition," a non-chemical explosion demonstrated in 1981 by LNG research for the government. The Department of Energy indicates flammable LNG vapor clouds can drift with the wind until the cloud becomes sufficiently diluted to become non-flammable. The drift distance can be miles.
Security zone set around LNG basin in Port of Freeport, TX — Government Security News, New York, NY
Nearly a year after it first proposed it, the U.S. Coast Guard has issued a final rule, effective on April 9, that creates a permanent security zone in the Freeport Liquid Natural Gas (LNG) Basin within the Port of Freeport, TX.
Entry into the security zone is prohibited, except to vessels that have received express permission from the Captain of the Port of Houston-Galveston.
— Upstream Online
ExxonMobil's Golden Pass liquefied natural gas receiving terminal in Port Arthur, Texas, will welcome its first shipment of LNG in September, according to RasGas chief Hamad Rashid Al Mohannadi.
The terminal had been damaged by hurricane during construction.
— LNG Law Blog
An official with Jamaica's state-owned Petroleum Corp. told Platts LNG Daily [subscription required] that he expects the winner of the bidding process to construct and operate an LNG terminal in Jamaica will be announced between March 31 and April 15, 2010.
— Bloomberg
The Houston-based natural-gas producer bought a 51 percent stake in the Kitimat LNG project in British Columbia in January, aiming to begin shipments in 2014. Apache said it plans to decide whether to build the terminal in the second quarter of 2011.
“Kitimat might just work, but there is substantial risk,” James Jensen, a Weston, Massachusetts-based economist who specializes in international gas markets, said in an interview. “The number of LNG export projects proposed in Australia, for example, is quite large and could keep the Asian market in surplus for some time.”
CERAWeek-LNG sector rethinks long term amid US natgas glut (Mar 11) — Reuters India
HOUSTON, March 10 (Reuters) - A glut of unconventional natural gas supplies from U.S. shale deposits has fundamentally recast the long-term prospects for liquefied natural gas imports
Shtokman LNG, whose main target market is the United States, has had to adjust to a new reality in which the U.S. -- once considered to be big growth LNG market -- does not need incremental LNG supplies for the foreseeable future.
U.S. natural gas reserves are up by a third since 2006, thanks to unconventional gas development including shale gas, with estimated reserves sufficient to supply the U.S. market for nearly 100 years at current rates.
[Red, yellow & bold emphasis added.]
CERA Week: World natural gas demand to absorb excess supply — (DowJones Newswire) Lloyd's, London, England, UK
The executive said natural gas markets are flexible enough to absorb the excess supply that has resulted from new shipments of super-chilled liquefied natural gas and, in the U.S., from vast new supplies from prolific onshore fields known as shales.
— Houston Chronicle, Houston, TX
[W]hile natural gas shale drilling in the U.S. has become more like a manufacturing process because the location of the shales are so well known, Europe doesn't have that same kind of data. So the risks to a potential producer are much higher.
Analyst: North American shale gas could drive LNG to European markets — LNG Law Blog
Speaking yesterday at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, D.C., BSA Energy President Ben Schlesinger said that increased development of unconventional gas plays in North America may trigger a natural gas glut in Europe. Platts LNG Daily reports that Schlesinger predicted that as production increases from North American shale gas projects, LNG that initially was expected to be imported into the United States likely will be diverted to European destinations. [Subscription required] [Red & yellow emphasis added.]
Top — (PRNewswire) MarketWatch
Delivering services under a performance based KPI (Key Performance Indicator) program, Jacobs will perform preventative, predictive, corrective and regulatory maintenance activities at the site.
[Editorial] (Mar 7) — Cape Cod Times, Hyannis, MA
We have long advocated an all-inclusive zoning process that leads to a comprehensive ocean management plan, which identifies appropriate and inappropriate places to build any commercial structure off our coast, whether it be LNG platforms or wind farms.
(Mar 7) — The Herald News, Fall River, MA
There is considerable interest from the community in participating in the hearings of the Senate Task Force on Liquefied Natural Gas. The most appropriate time for the public to testify will be Tuesday, March 16, at 2 p.m. at the Rhode Island StateHouse in the Senate Lounge.
— NBC 10 WJAR, Providence, RI
The chief executive of Weaver’s Cove Energy was at the Rhode Island State House on Tuesday to defend his company’s plans for a liquefied natural gas terminal in Mount Hope Bay.
Gordon Shearer was given a chance to speak before a special Senate committee staffed by legislators who are mostly critical of the company’s plans to develop the $700 million LNG facility.
(Mar 4) — Warwick Beacon, Warwick, RI
“If it’s truly an off-shore terminal,” he said referencing Rhode Island Sound, “we’ll take a look at it.” Also, he pointed out that an off-shore LNG terminal in Chesapeake Bay does not affect activities because it is sufficiently far enough from the shore that the exclusionary zones required for the tankers don’t disrupt shipping traffic, pleasure boating and regattas.
But that didn’t change the thinking of many in the room who, looking at the impact on Rhode Island waters, saw little more than hassle at the least and lost opportunities including jobs and revenues for the state at the most.
(Mar 7) — Naples Daily News, Naples, FL
In the event that large-scale storage facilities (salt caverns, deep mines) are not present, there is a possibility that we would see a liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility being built. LNG would be carried by large LNG tankers at a newly-constructed port facility (Tampa?). This presents a whole new set of safety concerns.
Turning natural gas strategy on its head — Calgary Herald, Calgary, AB
[I]f one looks at what's going on in the natural gas world around North America, it's becoming clearer that the surplus is not about to disappear any time soon. That's because market watchers are still talking about hot summers and cold winters as the way to solve the surplus situation -- instead of looking at long-term solutions such as using natural gas as a substitute for other fuels or being more aggressive in developing export markets.
[Editorial] — The Daily Astorian, Astoria, OR
There has been a certain turn in the long road of government deliberation over whether a liquefied natural gas terminal will be sited on the Columbia River at Bradwood. The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality has said it will not approve the plant without more definitive information. The National Marine Fisheries Service has said it must do more testing before giving its approval. And Oregon Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley have reintroduced legislation that would end the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's sole power to license LNG plants. All of this happened last week.
The Wyden-Merkley legislation targets the absurdity and the inadequacy of the federal process by which LNG terminals are sited. But in the near chaos of this election year, their progress is unlikely. The other gaping hole in the Bradwood LNG proposal is the lower Columbia River as prime habitat for salmon and a host of other creatures. On that score, the actions by Oregon DEQ and the federal NMFS are immediately significant.
The FERC process is not about establishing the basis of national need and strategic siting for a terminal. That is the role the federal government should play in this process.
All in all, the FERC process thus far shares many similarities with the financial mistakes that blew up into the Great Recession - a careless rush that is all about easy answers and quick profits. [Bold & red emphasis added.]
(Mar 8) — LNG Law Blog
The Daily Astorian reports that the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) has requested an extension of time until December 31, 2010, to study the potential affects of the Bradwood Landing LNG project on endangered species. An official with Bradwood Landing LNG developer NorthernStar Natural Gas said that "both FERC and Bradwood must agree to any extension beyond the statutory limit." The official noted that project developers expect to meet with FERC and NMFS to discuss the extension request in the coming weeks.
(Mar 8) — LNG Law Blog
Steve Johnson, president of Waterborne Energy, told Platts LNG Daily [subscription required] that he believes Sempra's Energia Costa Azul LNG import terminal [in Baja California, Mexico,] will receive two cargos per month once the Tangguh LNG liquefaction project in Indonesia comes on stream. This estimate accounts for certain contractual arrangements that allow some LNG cargos to be diverted from Costa Azul LNG to more profitable destinations.
President Obama announced his intent to nominate the following individuals to key administration posts: Cheryl A. LaFleur, Nominee for Commissioner, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission …. (Mar 8) — The White House, Washington, DC
Cheryl A. LaFleur has more than 20 years experience as a leader in the electric and gas industry. She retired in 2007 as Executive Vice President and acting CEO of National Grid USA responsible for the delivery of electricity to 3.4 million customers in the Northeast. Her previous positions at National Grid USA and its predecessor New England Electric System included Chief Operating Officer, President of the New England distribution companies, General Counsel, Senior Vice President of Retail Marketing, and Vice President of Demand-Side Management.
This may tip the FERC decisionmaking scales away from unsafe and unnecessary LNG terminal applications like Downeast LNG and Calais LNG.
(Mar 8) — The White House, Washington, DC
Commissioner Philip D. Moeller was nominated by President Bush to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, and sworn into office on July 24, 2006, by Chief Justice of the United States John Roberts, for a term expiring June 30, 2010.
[Blog] — Seattle Post Intelligencer, Seattle, WA
Obama taps Ex-Gorton aide
President Obama has nomined Philip Moeller, formerly a top Washington State Senate staff aide and energy adviser to Republican Sen. Slade Gorton, to continue on the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
— Reuters UK
NEW YORK, March 9 (Reuters) - The U.S. Energy Information Administration on Tuesday slightly lowered its estimate for domestic natural gas production in 2010, expecting output this year to be down 2.7 percent from 2009 levels.
— OilVoice
EIA expects U.S. net imports to be slightly higher in 2010 as a projected decline in pipeline imports is offset by lower exports and higher imports of liquefied natural gas (LNG). While cold weather across the northern hemisphere has helped absorb some of the new LNG supply that has recently come on-stream, U.S. LNG imports are forecast to increase by nearly 0.8 Bcf/d over last year in the first quarter 2010. For 2010 as a whole, U.S. LNG imports are forecast to increase by about 45 percent (or 0.56 Bcf/d). As global LNG demand and import capacity expand next year, EIA expects U.S. LNG imports to show little year-over-year growth in 2011.
Musings: Gas shales may change more than U.S. energy markets — Rigzone, Houston, TX
The U.S. natural gas industry has been focused on the effect the commerciality of gas shale formations is having on the domestic industry. One result is that after years of declining gas production, the U.S. has experienced a rise in domestic supplies. Secondly, the Potential Gas Committee has suggested, based on its study, the country has huge gas resources that can be developed with today’s drilling and completion technologies. They did not, however, suggest that all the potential natural gas resources identified are commercial at current gas prices, and especially at the sub-$5 per thousand cubic feet (Mcf) prices being experienced now. One of the key new basins that will supply this growth in natural gas production is the Marcellus Shale that extends from West Virginia through Pennsylvania and Ohio and into New York. Reportedly this is the largest basin in areal extent (95,000 square miles vs. 5,000 square miles for the Barnett Shale) and possibly in the amount of gas potential with an estimated 500 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) of reserves.
While Marcellus Shale gas has been targeted for the Northeast energy market, not only due to its close proximity to the major consuming markets in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York and New England, Canadian gas pipeline companies are thinking that some of this supply could move north of the border to satisfy Ontario's market. TransCanada Corp. along with Ontario-based Union Gas Ltd. and New York-based Empire Pipeline are seeking input from Marcellus Shale producers about their willingness to ship gas across the border to the Ontario market. The gas pipeline companies are holding "open season" calls to determine about how much supply Marcellus Shale producers might be willing to commit.
The long-term ramifications of this potential change in natural gas flows in Canada could be quite significant. It could reverse a 50+-year history of the Canadian natural gas pipeline industry and the way Canada's E&P companies have targeted the development of the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin.
Interview - Algeria sees global LNG recovery in 2-3 years — Reuters India
"We know that the U.S. market is probably gone for some time to come because of the huge unconventional gas that has been developed all over the United States."
[Red & yellow emphasis added.]
— BarentsObserver, Kirkenes, Norway
After a meeting with General Director of Total’s office in Russia Pierre Nergararian, Governor Dmitriyenko told the press that the Shtokman project has not been postponed three years, "as the rumors told", but only a few months, GTRK Murman reports.
Top Province of New Brunswick responds to Calais LNG (Mar 4) — LNG Law Blog
… New Brunswick rejects Calais LNG's assertion that FERC should limit the scope of the Province's intervention in this proceeding, emphasizing that Calais LNG mischaracterized FERC's treatment of New Brunswick in the Downeast LNG proceeding. … Calais LNG has admitted that it did not provide required information … as required under the National Environmental Policy Act and FERC's regulations. … Calais LNG has not provided any information regarding LNG vessel transit routes that would account for Canada's continued prohibition of LNG vessel transit through Head Harbour Passage.
[Bold red emphasis added.]
Boosting Canaport's output — Telegraph-Journal, Saint John, NB
Natural gas: Repsol Energy North America aims to double its winter output to New England in 2010-11, company president says
Phil Ribbeck, president of Repsol Energy North America, says the company aims to double its winter output to New England in 2010-11 - up to 800 million cubic feet of natural gas a day.
Canaport has a maximum output of one billion cubic feet of gas per day.
John Torgan: Deconstructing LNG project [Op-ed column] (Mar 4) — The Providence Journal, Providence, RI
[T]here are now four LNG terminals in the Northeast [Distrigas LNG, Northeast Gateway, Neptune LNG, and Canaport LNG] equipped to serve the same market. This, coupled with recent domestic natural-gas discoveries, fundamentally challenges the need for the Hess project to go forward. Even Massachusetts’s Department of Energy Resources questioned the public benefit claims of Weaver’s Cove, asserting in a November letter that “it is unclear to what extent, if any, Weaver Cove’s LNG supply is needed either to meet the region’s gas supply needs or to reduce fossil use.”
Note that the international LNG industry organization, [SIGTTO], has established recommended minimum siting standards and criteria for LNG facilities. [SIGTTO] recommends that LNG terminals be sited to avoid densely populated areas, located so as not to conflict with other waterway uses, and to avoid long, narrow, inland waterways. By its own industry’s standards, Hess’s proposal fails on all counts. [Red, yellow & bold emphasis added.]
— Johnston Sun Rise, Warwick RI
Torgan made it clear it’s the proposed citing of a terminal in the confined waters of Mount Hope Bay that Save the Bay opposes.
“If it’s truly an off-shore terminal,” he said referencing Rhode Island Sound, “we’ll take a look at it.” Also, he pointed out that an off-shore LNG terminal in Chesapeake Bay does not affect activities because it is sufficiently far enough from the shore that the exclusionary zones required for the tankers don’t disrupt shipping traffic, pleasure boating and regattas.
With three LNG terminals in the northeast region, Torgan said Weaver’s Cove has not demonstrated a public need for the facility. Further, he said, with the discovery of reserves of natural gas in shale deposits in Pennsylvania and upstate New York, there should be more than an adequate supply for an extended period.
LNG reps grilled over terminal plans (Mar 4) — EastBay RI
“You should tell your bosses there’s going to be constant resistance and no change in the fact that we oppose this and that they should just back off and go somewhere else,” said Bristol Councilor Halsey Herreshoff, who led much of the questioning.
[Hess vice president for engineering and operations Leon Bowdoin] pointed out that Weaver’s Cove representatives have not been able to discuss emergency response plans with local emergency responders because they have not been willing to engage in discussions. [Red, yellow & bold emphasis added.]
[Editorial] (Mar 3) — The Baltimore Sun, Baltimore, MD
[I]mporting natural gas from producing countries such as Yemen, Indonesia and Russia to the U.S. looks like a questionable move for any number of strategic reasons, particularly with new estimates that suggest North American natural gas reserves are greater than previously thought. The U.S. Department of Energy forecasts 2011 will see a dip in LNG imports even as the economy recovers from recession.
Make no mistake, natural gas has a role to play in this country. It’s cleaner burning than other non-renewable energy sources such as coal or oil and produces far less carbon per thermal unit than coal, an important consideration given the potentially devastating impact of climate change. But that doesn’t mean that LNG terminals ought to be located anywhere their developers would like to put them. [Red emphasis added.]
[News release] — PR-USA.net
The Elba Island LNG terminal expansion consists of three new vaporizer units which were put in service on March 1, raising the facility's send-out capacity to a total of 1.75 Bcf per day (Bcf/d) and one new storage tank which will be commissioned later this summer increasing the storage capacity at the facility by 4.2 Bcf billion cubic feet (Bcf). Elba Express Pipeline, an approximately 190-mile pipeline with a total capacity of 945 MMcf/d, transports natural gas supplies from the Elba Island LNG terminal to markets in the southeastern and eastern United States. The Elba terminal expansion and the Elba Express pipeline projects are fully supported by long term firm capacity commitments from Shell NA LNG LLC.
(Mar 3) — KPLC, Lake Charles, LA
LAKE CHARLES, LA (KPLC) - It's a legal tug of war that attorneys for Sempra say is creating national, even international interest: The fight between he Port of Lake Charles and West Cameron Port over who should rightfully own the land upon which the LNG company operates.
— Lloyd's List, London, England, UK [Paid subscription required]
A FIVE-year legal battle with direct impact on Sempra LNG’s billion-dollar investment in a new liquefied natural gas terminal in Louisiana has resumed before a US appellate court.
— The Daily Astorian, Astoria, OR
A federal fisheries agency director says it could take the rest of the year to complete the endangered species review of the Bradwood Landing liquefied natural gas project.
Researchers for NMFS have been sampling fish at Bradwood for almost a decade and have documented an abundance of juvenile salmon at the site that could be harmed by the project's 45 acres of dredging and billions of gallons of ballast water intakes for LNG delivery tankers at the terminal. [Red emphasis added.]
(Mar 4) — The Daily Astorian, Astoria, OR
Most of the company's DEQ permits are still being held up by project opponents' challenge to Clatsop County's land-use approval, a required component of state permit approval. The Land Use Board of Appeals is holding a hearing today on the case, which hinges on the project's size and its impacts to salmon habitat.
Wyden, Merkley try liquefied natural gas bill again — The Hillsboro Argus, Hillsboro, OR
"We continue to want to press this issue and get this moved back to the states, and I think the atmosphere may be more conducive this time than last time," said Tom Towslee, a spokesman for Wyden.
In past efforts to have similar legislation passed, former New York Senator Hillary Clinton also co-sponsored the legislation, Towslee said.
(Mar 3) — OpEdNews
…Korea is not buying into this play to sell gas to America. Korea Gas has an official mandate from Seoul to secure energy supplies for Korean domestic use.
The Koreans will almost certainly push to send the gas westward. To the British Columbia Pacific coast. Where it can be turned into LNG and shipped home.
[Press release] (Mar 3) — PRWeb
The members of the Natural Gas Council (NGC), representing all sectors of the natural gas industry from producers, to pipelines, to utilities and consumers, express their opposition to S. 3056, legislation that would repeal provisions of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 that deal with the approval and siting of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) terminals.
Senator reintroduces bill to strip FERC of LNG terminal authority — Oil & Gas Journal
The American Gas Association, which represents utilities and local distribution companies, is also a member of the NGC, but did not issue a statement on the matter.
CLNG [Center for LNG] says Senate LNG bill to repeal part of EPACT 2005 may limit states' involvement in LNG siting process (Mar 4) — LNG Law Blog
According to Cooper, prior to EPACT 2005, the only way state agencies could influence FERC's LNG siting process was by intervening in the Commission's proceeding. Now, says Cooper, state and local officials are "ingrained into the process."
Shale gas vies with oil and liquids for attention (Mar 3) — Platts [Subscription required]
Gas is not the only objective of upstream companies working in shale. US Petrohawk Energy found a higher-than-expected yield of natural gas liquids (NGLs) in the Hawkville Field at Eagle Ford Shale last year, and this is proving advantageous to its bottom line.
"There is a lot more to come from [Eagle Ford] shale play. There are a lot more wells to be developed and produced. That will mean a lot more gas production and a lot more oil or condensate production," said George Lippman, president of Lippman Consulting.
The $62 million T. Boone Pickens project — Greentech Media, Cambridge, MA
Pickens vows that we’re going to have the Natural Gas Act legislation by Memorial Day.
Closing words from Mr. Pickens: "We are five times bigger than the Saudis" in terms of natural gas reserves / fuel equivalent. Natural gas is "cleaner" and "it's under our feet." He also said that the U.S. would go down in history as the dumbest country ever to have graced the globe if we do not make this transition.
Top Bill to establish "Energy Corridors" raises concerns (Mar 2) — Maine Public Broadcasting Network (MPBN)
Maine lawmakers are taking up a bill that has major implications for relations with Canada, future electricity costs, alternative energy development and jobs for Maine workers. Critics are worried the bill backed by the Baldacci administration doesn't contain enough safeguards.
[PUC Commissioner John Cashman] puts it this way: Either Maine can be a player and take advantage of the corridor opportunity or it can sit on its hands and let the opportunity pass by.
Sandia Laboratory updating and expanding LNG safety studies (Mar 1) — LNG Law Blog
The Sandia National Laboratories are updating and expanding their previous studies of LNG safety issues. Specifically, the new studies will analyze the potential effects of large LNG spills and cascading storage tank failures aboard LNG vessels. According to Platts LNG Daily, the report is not expected until the end of 2010. [Red & yellow emphasis added.]
(Mar 2) — LNG Law Blog
Clarifying remarks he made previously, Mass. State Rep. Garrett Bradley (D) said that he is not aware of any plans to review previous plans for an LNG import project on or near Outer Brewster Island. However, he told the Patriot Ledger that "it could become an issue down the road."
Commerce digest — The Providence Journal, Providence, RI
Rhode Island: Officials testify against LNG terminal PROVIDENCE — Municipal leaders and local public safety officials who testified before a state Senate task force Tuesday were unanimously opposed to a proposal to build a floating liquefied natural gas terminal in Fall River.
[The four officials] told the Senate Task Force on Liquefied Natural Gas that the trips, which could average 70 a year, would be a potential public safety hazard and would negatively impact the quality of life [Red & yellow emphasis added.]
(Mar 2) — The Providence Journal, Providence, RI
The word going around the waterfront is that an LNG terminal in Mount Hope Bay would kill efforts to bring the America’s Cup back to Newport.
The America’s Cup has never been raced on Narragansett Bay.
Even if a course could be laid out on the Bay, there’s another problem. The mast of the defending champion, BMW Oracle, is 30 feet too high to pass under the Newport-Pell Bridge.
(Mar 2) — Asbury Park Press, Neptune, NJ
TRENTON — New Jersey's acting environmental executive wants a fuller diagnosis of Barnegat Bay's problems, strongly supports erecting wind turbines off the coast and has serious concerns about proposed liquefied natural gas facilities offshore.
Mikulski, Cardin push to block Sparrows Point LNG terminal (Mar 2) — Baltimore Business Journal, Baltimore, MD
“I found FERC all too eager to rubberstamp the project despite the significant and very real concerns of Baltimore residents and the State of Maryland,” Mikulski said in a statement. “It’s time to restore the decision making to the state and local residents who will be affected by it.”
Proposed legislation would alter LNG authority (Mar 2) — The Daily Record, Baltimore, MD
Maryland officials have fought hard against building an LNG terminal at Sparrows Point, writing their own legislation banning LNG facilities from certain waterways or from being located near homes, but the laws have all been shot down because FERC is the only agency with the authority to approve or deny where a company can locate an LNG plant.
A spokeswoman for Cardin said the bill will have to go through the Energy and Natural Resources Committee before it reaches the Senate floor, where it would compete for calendar time with major issues like jobs and health care that are tying up the Senate. But she said that having a number of senators as sponsors is an important part of moving it forward.
(Mar 2) — LNG Law Blog
Last month Maryland's Department of Planning informed FERC that the Maryland Intergovernmental Review and Coordination process has been completed for Sparrows Point LNG.
Separately, FERC staff announced the availability of a revised Draft Final General Conformity Determination for Pennsylvania for the Sparrows Point LNG project and associated pipelines. FERC concluded that the portions of the project that will be located in Pennsylvania will achieve conformity with applicable state and federal air quality standards once project developers purchase the requisite number of NOx offsets.
(Mar 1) — LNG Law Blog
Dominion Cove Point LNG, LP has requested written authorization from FERC to begin construction on the Pier Reinforcement Project by March 12, 2010.
(Mar 2) — Reuters
Elba Island sendout now 1.75 bcfd
The Elba Island LNG terminal now has a send-out capacity of 1.75 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day, up from 1.2 bcfd previously, thanks to three new vaporizer units which came online on Monday.
In addition, one new 4.2 bcf storage tank at the terminal will be commissioned later this summer.
(Mar 2) — LNG Law Blog
In a conference call with financial analysts yesterday, El Paso Corp. executives said that they are considering selling the Elba Island LNG import terminal and associated pipeline to El Paso Pipeline Partners LP, the company’s master limited partnership subsidiary.
(Feb 28) — The Facts, Clute, TX
FREEPORT — Freeport Fire and EMS has expanded its fire prevention capabilities after receiving a $12,000 donation from Freeport LNG to buy a fire extinguisher training pit.
The 4-foot by 4-foot pit uses a combination of propane and water to fuel fires that first responders can use to strengthen their operation of fire extinguishers.
This allows us to do public demonstrations and deliver fire extinguisher training so that they can handle a small emergency or protect themselves so they can exit out of a building,” Interim Freeport Fire Chief Chris Motley said.
(Feb 25) — US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC
The link below will download a PDF file (37 KB).
This report provides an update from the Commission’s Eighth Report, submitted on August 26, 2009. During the period covered by this report: 1) TransCanada Alaska Company, LLC (TC Alaska) filed a request for approval of its Open Season Plan; 2) Denali – The Alaska Gas Pipeline LLC (Denali) announced its intentions to file a request for approval of its Open Season Plan in April 2010; and 3) development continued on certain other natural gas transportation projects in Alaska that would not be subject to the Commission’s jurisdiction.
Encana strikes $1 billion deal with Korean Gas (Mar 1) — Edmonton Journal, Edmonton, AB
According to a report by Platt’s Energy, Canada is set to join an exclusive club of global LNG exporters in what it dubbed North America’s second natural gas revolution.
“The hope is that the U.S. revolution in unconventional gas can be replicated in Canada,” it said.
A magical transformation of Olympian proportions (Mar 2) — Edmonton Journal, Edmonton, AB
Korea Gas plans to invest $1.1 billion over the next five years to help EnCana develop its Montney and Horn River shale gas plays in northeast B.C.
Korea Gas, already one of the world's largest importers of LNG (liquefied natural gas), is also a major backer of a proposed $3-billion LNG export terminal at Kitimat, on the B.C. coast.
(Mar 2) — The Daily News, Longview, WA
The Houston company must secure air and water quality permits from the Oregon agency to build its terminal, which would import liquefied gas from around the world, store it in large tanks and pump it to market through new pipelines, one of which would cross Clatsop, Columbia and Cowlitz Counties.
The Associated Press reported last week that the Oregon DEQ told NorthernStar it will probably deny NorthernStar's water quality permit. DEQ officials said the company had not provided three-dimensional computer modeling and to evaluate questions concerning erosion, water quality and fish habitat issues.
[Red emphasis added.]
Wyden, Dodd, Cantwell, Mikulski, Cardin and Merkley fight for local control over LNG terminal siting [Press release] (Mar 2) — US Senator Ron Wyden
WASHINGTON, DC – Working to give state entities the power to determine both the need for – and the location of – liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals in their states , U.S. Senators Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Chris Dodd (D-Conn.), Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.), Ben Cardin (D-Md.) and Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) introduced legislation today to repeal portions of the Energy Policy Act of 2005, which gave that authority to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). Prior to the passage of the 2005 Energy Bill, such decisions had historically been decided by siting agencies in each state.
“FERC has totally disregarded the safety risks of locating [an] LNG facility in a densely populated, urban area or what the substantial upgrades to security would entail.
FERC insists that it is not required to determine that the projects are actually needed in order to allow them to be built. FERC also refuses to determine whether alternatives to these projects could supply energy with less environmental impact.
This issue ultimately does not impact terminal siting in Passamaquoddy Bay for two reasons:
The UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) allows Canada to prohibit LNG transits into Passamaquoddy Bay, unless the US were to ratify UNCLOS, in which case Canada would still have good cause to fight the transits; but more importantly... Downeast LNG and Calais LNG cannot satisfy the US Coast Guard Waterway Suitability Report and Letter of Recommendation requirements. Wholly apart from the innocent passage issue, the US Coast Guard requires the LNG projects to obtain Canadian coordination and cooperation for safe and secure transits in both US and Canadian waters during transit. Canada has already resolutely and repeatedly indicated that Canada will not provide coordination and cooperation for the transits; meaning, the transits cannot be performed in a safe and secure manner.
New effort under way to rip LNG authority away from feds — The Daily Astorian, Astoria, OR
Democrats Wyden and Merkley teamed up with Sens. Chris Dodd, (D-Conn.), Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.) and Ben Cardin (D-Md.) to introduce legislation that would repeal the portions of the 2005 Energy Policy Act that took LNG siting authority away from the states and put control back where it used to be.
NW senators work to control LNG siting rights — (AP) KATU-TV, Portland, OR
Oregon and Washington are fighting the Bradwood Landing LNG project being developed by Northern Star Natural Gas of Houston near the mouth of the Columbia River. They claim it is not needed and federal approval was granted before full environmental reviews were in.
The bill would not overturn commission approval of the Bradwood Landing project, or the Jordan Cove project on Coos Bay, but would apply to both if federal approvals are overturned on appeal, said Wyden spokesman Tom Towslee. The bill would apply to the Oregon LNG project in Warrenton, because it has yet to win commission approval.
"In our opinion, FERC has just been incredibly cavalier about the process ," Carrier said. "It seems to be more focused on issuing a certificate of need and necessity than to doing due diligence on siting issues."
[Bold red emphasis added.]
Impact of U.S. shale gas on Europe-Factbox — (Reuters) Foxyard
U.S. shale gas has turned the global gas market on its head , postponing major European investments in liquefied natural gas (LNG) projects intended to supply the U.S.
Norway's Statoil may also limit investment in the Snoehvit LNG project in light of the gas glut created by U.S. shale gas. [Red & yellow emphasis added.]
Energy industry uncertainty to continue despite direction of US climate change and energy policy — AbuDhabiCityGuide.com
"The evolution of low carbon technologies will happen faster than many conventional forecasts predict, so the question is whether policy makers in the US and the Middle East can react as fast as technology development," said Arthur Hanna, Managing Director, Oil and Energy, at Accenture. "And although much US policy has global influence, we live in a multi-polar world where, for instance, China’s commitment to Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) or energy efficiency could have as great an impact on the Middle East’s energy industry as changes in North America." Kenneth Medlock, a research fellow from the Baker Institute, discussed with delegates how rising production of natural gas from shale in the United States was likely to limit opportunities to sell liquefied natural gas (LNG) to North America [Red, yellow & bold emphasis added.]
Gazprom sees LNG competing with shale gas, targets U.S. market — (Bloomberg News) Business Week
The company has no reason yet to revise its target for U.S. market share given the costs and possibly negative environmental impact of developing shale gas, Medvedev said. Gazprom’s output will depend on market conditions, he said.
U.S. shale gas could displace significant volumes of LNG, potentially growing to a similar scale as the entire current global LNG market by 2015, JPMorgan Chase & Co. said in a report on Feb. 9. The unconventional resource is “a complete game changer” in the U.S., BP Plc CEO Tony Hayward said in January at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
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Read about the effort to Fix FERC:
Save Passamaquoddy Bay • PO Box 222 • Eastport, ME 04631
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