Mountain Valley Natural Gas Pipeline Project Extended
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The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) extended the permit for the Mountain Valley Natural Gas Pipeline for an additional 4 years. The project, a joint venture encompassing 5 companies, has been experiencing a series of annoying delays that have made achieving the original permit deadline impossible. Thus, the 4-year permit extension can be considered a major win for the companies involved in the pipeline project.
Overview of the Mountain Valley Natural Gas Pipeline Project
The pipeline will be approximately 300 miles long and is being developed by a joint venture comprised of Equitrans Midstream, NextEra Energy, Consolidated Edison, AltaGas and RGC Resources. It will run across West Virginia and Virginia, and is expected to transport 2 billion cubic feet of gas per day.
The original permit deadline was Oct. 2022, and it has been extended to Oct. 2026. The delays have mainly stemmed from rejected federal permits, a situation which may or may not be geared to favor clean energy sources. Reasons for rejected permits have included a lack of consideration around sedimentation and erosion impacts, failure to comply with forest management protocols, and similar concerns from various environmental groups.
In addition to time, the delays have impacted the financial aspects of the project in a major way. The original estimate was a total cost of $3.7 billion. It has since ballooned to a whopping $6.2 billion.
With all that being said, these types of delays, permit expirations, and permit extensions being granted by FERC are all common occurrences in the pipeline development world. New pipelines have been increasingly challenged by environmentalists as well as the “NIMBY” crowd (i.e., not in my backyard). It’s a shame, because these types of initiatives are critical to the ongoing stability of the energy supply as well as the reliability of the grid.
With any luck, the Mountain Valley Natural Gas Pipeline will indeed be completed in 2026. Time will tell.
