Top energy regulators in the United States and Canada, which already have a long history of cooperation, signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) agreement last Monday to further improve interagency coordination of cross-border natural gas pipelines.

FERC Chairman Pat Wood and Chairman Ken Vollman of the National Energy Board (NEB) signed the MOU in Halifax, Nova Scotia, where they were attending the annual conference of the Canadian Association of Members of Public Utility Tribunals.

“This MOU will serve us well as our two countries become ever more interdependent in cross-border energy issues,” Wood said. It “reinforces our existing cooperative relationship and furthers the work of both agencies,” echoed Vollman.

The agreement calls for FERC and the NEB to share information and coordinate the timing of pipeline regulatory decisions to the extent it is possible, particularly with respect to a long-line Alaska gas pipeline.

“Sharing of information and timely decision-making are two critical elements for the siting and construction of a natural gas pipeline across Canada to bring natural gas stranded in Alaska to the lower 48 states,” Wood noted.

©Copyright 2004 Intelligence Press Inc. Allrights reserved. The preceding news report may not be republishedor redistributed, in whole or in part, in any form, without priorwritten consent of Intelligence Press, Inc.