Infrastructure

Sempra Energy late Tuesday said it has asked FERC for authorization to site, construct and operate a liquefied natural gas (LNG) export facility, Port Arthur LNG LLC, east of Houston on the Sabine-Neches Waterway.

TransCanada Corp. announced Tuesday the 13th consent agreement with native communities along its proposed 900-kilometer (540-mile) Prince Rupert Gas Transmission (PRGT) delivery route for shale production across British Columbia.

Construction of the Stonewall Metering and Regulating Station in Loudoun County, VA, is complete, according to Dominion Transmission Inc. (DTI), which asked the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to authorize placing the station into service by Friday (Dec. 2) [CP15-492]. DTIrequested a partial notice to proceed for the Leidy South Project to construct the Stonewall M&R station in October. Leidy South would serve new and existing power generation facilities with natural gas traveling from the Leidy Interconnect in Clinton, PA, to points in Loudoun County. Panda Stonewall LLC, Virginia Power Services Energy Corp. Inc. and Mattawoman Energy LLC have signed binding agreements for all of the project capacity. The estimated cost is $209.66 million. DTI filed itsapplication for the project with the Commission in 2015, received afavorable environmental assessment from staff in March andapproval in late August.

U.S. pipeline exports of natural gas have doubled since 2009 and are expected to continue to grow in 2016, with almost all of the growth attributed to increasing exports to Mexico, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA).

MPLX LP, Marathon Petroleum Corp.’s (MPC) midstream master limited partnership, announced that Craig Pierson, vice president (VP) of operations at MPLX GP LLC, MPLX’s general partner, and president of MPLX’s subsidiary, Marathon Pipe Line LLC(MPL), will retire effective Jan. 1. Pierson joined Marathon in 1978 as a pipeline engineer and held numerous positions in pipeline, transportation and logistics and marketing. Pierson was named VP of operations for MPL in 2005 and assumed the role of president in 2011. “Craig has made significant and lasting contributions to the pipeline organization, leading its growth into the flexible and integrated system we operate today,” said MPLX President Don Templin. Pierson will be replaced by Timothy Aydt, who is currently a general manager at MPC.

Fluor Corp. has signed a memorandum of understanding with Boston-based Clean Energy Future LLC to provide development services for the company’s next natural gas-fired power plants in Ohio.

FERC on Tuesday denied a rehearing request by New York Attorney General (AG) Eric Schneiderman over allegations of unauthorized tree cutting and other activities along the right-of-way for the embattled Constitution natural gas pipeline.

A coalition of activist groups, citing parallels to the protests against the Dakota Access Pipeline project, is urging Oregon officials to reject the proposed Jordan Cove liquefied natural gas (LNG) export terminal and the 232-mile Pacific Connector (PCPL) gas pipeline.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) ordered protesters to disband their camps in North Dakota Saturday as protesters and law enforcement squared off again over construction of the $3.8 billion Dakota Access oil pipeline.