FERC Sets Environmental Schedule for 12 LNG Projects

The staff of the US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Ferc) on August 31 issued environmental schedules for 12 LNG export terminal applications currently pending before the commission, reflecting Ferc’s recent efforts to streamline its review process for LNG project applications.

“The commission has made significant strides in streamlining our regulatory processes to adapt to the increasing number, and greater complexity, of the LNG applications we have received,” Ferc chairman Kevin McIntyre said. “These process improvements have shortened projected environmental schedules in some cases by nine to 12 months.”

To improve the regulatory process, Ferc has added several new LNG staff, signed an agreement with the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) to more efficiently utilise each agency’s expertise in the LNG authorisation process and in issues related to LNG safety, hired an outside contractor to assist commission staff in construction inspections and worked with applicants to hire third-party contractors to conduct analyses that involve non-proprietary information.

The LNG environmental schedules also benefit from a new commission practice of moving to electronic issuances of environmental documents for its natural gas and hydropower programs.

The 12 LNG export projects, their respective capacities and deadlines for the issuance of final environmental impact statements and federal authorisations, are:

• Freeport Train 4 (5.1mn mt/yr; Nov. 28, 2018; Jan. 31, 2019);
• Port Arthur LNG (13.5mn mt/yr; Jan. 31, 2019; May 1, 2019);
• Driftwood LNG (27.6mn mt/yr; Jan. 18, 2019; April 18, 2019);
• Corpus Christi Stage 3 (11.45mn mt/yr; Feb. 8, 2019; May 9, 2019);
• Texas LNG (4mn mt/yr; March 15, 2019; June 13; 2019);
• Gulf LNG (11mn mt/yr; April 17, 2019; July 16, 2019);
• Rio Grande LNG (27mn mt/yr; April 26, 2019; July 25, 2019);
• Eagle LNG (Small-scale, 132mn ft³/day; April 12, 2019; July 11, 2019);
• Annova LNG (6.95mn mt/yr; April 19, 2019; July 18, 2019);
• Venture Global Plaquemines LNG (20mn mt/yr; May 3, 2019; Aug. 1, 2019);
• Jordan Cove LNG (7.8mn mt/yr; federal authorisation, Nov. 29, 2019), and;
• Alaska LNG (20mn mt/yr; Nov. 8, 2019 (revised); Feb. 6, 2020).