The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issued final certificates or favorable preliminary determinations (PD) on nonenvironmental grounds to five major pipeline expansion projects last Wednesday at its regularly scheduled meeting. The Commission awarded a certificate to Northwest Pipeline’s Evergreen expansion in the state of Washington and granted a PD to PG&E Gas Transmission Northwest’s 2003 Expansion project in Idaho, Washington and Oregon. Both projects would serve mainly new power generation in the Pacific Northwest region. Several eastern pipeline projects also received regulatory approvals.

The Evergreen project would include 27.29 miles of 36-inch diameter looping line along its mainline in several Washington counties. It would serve five new power plants that are scheduled to be built, as well as lessen north-flow capacity constraints on the Northwest system. The expansion would add 91,580 hp of compression and boost mainline capacity by 276,625 Dth/d (includes 14,789 Dth/d of turned-back capacity) from the Canadian border at Sumas, WA, to Chehalis, WA. The looping portion of project is scheduled to be in service by June 1, 2003, while the new compression is due to start operating Nov. 1, 2003.

PG&E Gas Transmission Northwest’s 2003 expansion would include 53 miles of 42-inch diameter mainline looping in Idaho, Washington and Oregon, as well as installation of 19,500 hp of compression in Oregon. It would allow transportation of an additional 143,000 Dth/d annually plus another 20,000 Dth/d in the winter to serve new generation capacity in the Pacific Northwest and California. Agreements cover the entire incremental capacity.

FERC also issued final certificates to two major expansion projects in the Northeast region. Texas Eastern Transmission (Tetco) got a green light to add 100,000 Dth/d of transportation capacity to serve New Jersey Natural Gas. The $75.2 million project will include installation of 10,000 hp of additional compression at Tetco’s existing Lambertville station in Hunterdon, NJ. Tetco also will add four new segments, totaling 16 miles, of 36-inch diameter looping line in several Pennsylvania counties and will uprate compression at two stations by 8,600 hp each. The in-service date for the project is Nov. 1.

The commission issued a certificate to Dominion Transmission, Tennessee Gas and National Fuel for a project that will increase capacity on all three systems through the addition of compression in Pennsylvania. The project would allow Tennessee to lease 150,000 Dth/d of capacity on Dominion and 130,000 Dth/d on National Fuel, enabling it to connect its system to Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line and Tetco at the Leidy Hub in Leidy, PA. The project will provide shippers on Tennessee with better access to markets and supply, according to the FERC order [CP02-44].

FERC also granted a PD to SCG Pipeline Inc., a subsidiary of Scana Corp., which intends to build a pipeline in Georgia and South Carolina and to buy capacity on Southern Natural Gas (Sonat) in order to provide customers in Georgia and South Carolina with access to Southern LNG’s recommissioned Elba Island LNG import terminal. SCG plans to build 18 miles of 20-inch diameter pipeline from a connection with Sonat at the Twin 30s facilities in Port Wentworth in Chatham County, GA, to Jasper County, SC. The Twin 30s line is a 13-mile pipe that extends to the tailgate of the Southern LNG facilities in Chatham County. The cost of the project is $33.4 million. The new line will have a capacity of 190 MMcf/d and will provide access to a new source of supply for the region.

SCG has entered into a binding precedent agreement with affiliate Scana Energy Marketing Inc. (SEMI) for the entire 190,000 Mcf/d of capacity, which it plans to use to supply gas to a 875 MW generating facility being developed by SCG affiliate, South Carolina Electric and Gas Co.

The PD also covers SCG’s request to acquire an undivided ownership interest in Sonat’s Twin 30s facilities to transport regasified LNG directly from the Elba Island LNG terminal to the Port Wentworth Interconnection between Sonat’s system and SCG’s proposed pipeline facilities.

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