HOUSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Tennessee Gas Pipeline Company (TGP), a subsidiary of Kinder Morgan,
Inc. (NYSE: KMI), is adopting two alternative routes for its proposed
Northeast Energy Direct project to minimize environmental impact and
allow for the expansion of natural gas service in the state of New
Hampshire. Following a thorough evaluation of feasible route
alternatives for the market path of the project from Wright, New York,
to Dracut, Massachusetts, the company plans to submit an amended
resource report filing with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
(FERC) on Monday, Dec. 8. TGP plans to adopt both the New York Powerline
Alternative and the New Hampshire Powerline Alternative, which will
utilize existing utility corridors to lessen the environmental impact of
the project. TGP is also notifying elected officials, federal and state
regulatory agencies, and landowners in proximity to the proposed
pipeline of its decision. TGP also noted the proposed route change will
enable the company to avoid and substantially minimize the crossing of
certain Article 97 properties and areas of critical environmental
concern in Massachusetts.
“While evaluating the feasibility of possible routes, which is a
critical part of the regulatory review prior to building a pipeline, as
we committed to do when we started this process, we have listened to
stakeholders and taken their comments and concerns seriously,” said East
Region Pipelines President Kimberly S. Watson. “By adopting the New York
Powerline Alternative and the New Hampshire Powerline Alternative, TGP
will be able to construct significantly more of the pipeline adjacent to
and parallel with existing utility corridors in portions of New York,
Massachusetts and New Hampshire, reduce the need for construction in
undeveloped portions of the market path region and lessen environmental
impacts. Additionally, we are working with Liberty Utilities and others
to expand natural gas service into new areas in New Hampshire.”
In November, Liberty Utilities (Pipeline & Transmission) Corp., a wholly
owned subsidiary of Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. (APUC), and a
subsidiary of Kinder Morgan, Inc. agreed to form a new entity, Northeast
Expansion LLC, to undertake development, construction and ownership of a
30-inch or 36-inch natural gas transmission pipeline to be located
between Wright, New York, and Dracut, Massachusetts. Under the
agreement, APUC will initially subscribe for a 2.5 percent interest in
the new entity, with an opportunity to increase its participation up to
10 percent.
The NED Project is being developed to serve specifically the New England
region. The New England region, as a whole, stands to benefit from the
NED Project as it will bring additional gas supplies to meet the growth
needs of local distribution companies, enable New England to sustain its
reliance on natural gas-fired generation and lower energy costs by
providing scalable transportation capacity attached to lower cost,
nearby domestic and abundant Marcellus natural gas supplies. As part of
TGP’s fully integrated natural gas pipeline transportation system, the
project will provide additional access to diverse supplies of natural
gas to customers in the New England region.
With the adoption of the New York Powerline Alternative and the New
Hampshire Powerline Alternative, the proposed revised route will now
include: approximately 188 miles of new and co-located mainline pipeline
facilities, including about 53 miles of pipeline generally co-located
with TGP’s existing 200 Line and an existing power utility corridor in
western New York near the proposed Market Path Mid Station No. 1;
approximately 64 miles of pipeline generally co-located with an existing
power utility corridor in eastern Massachusetts; and approximately 71
miles of pipeline generally co-located with an existing power utility
corridor in southern New Hampshire, extending east to the proposed
Dracut, Massachusetts, Market Path Tail Station. As currently
contemplated, exclusive of laterals, the route would be adjacent to or
co-located with existing rights-of-way for approximately 90 percent of
the mileage. TGP’s filing will reflect the revisions to and a full
description of the proposed route and proposed project facilities.
TGP plans to host open houses in the project area beginning in mid
January 2015 to provide additional information and answer questions. The
open house schedule will be sent to landowners in proximity to the
proposed pipeline, towns and communities, and elected officials when the
dates and locations for those open houses have been established. The
schedule will also be filed with the FERC and posted on the NED Project
website: www.kindermorgan.com.
Kinder Morgan, Inc. (NYSE: KMI) is the largest energy infrastructure
company in North America. It owns an interest in or operates
approximately 80,000 miles of pipelines and 180 terminals. The company’s
pipelines transport natural gas, gasoline, crude oil, CO2 and
other products, and its terminals store petroleum products and
chemicals, and handle bulk materials like coal and petroleum coke.
Kinder Morgan is the largest midstream and third largest energy company
in North America with an enterprise value of more than $125 billion. For
more information please visit www.kindermorgan.com.
This news release includes forward-looking statements. These
forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties and
are based on the beliefs and assumptions of management, based on
information currently available to them. Although Kinder Morgan
believes that these forward-looking statements are based on reasonable
assumptions, it can give no assurance that such assumptions will
materialize. Important factors that could cause actual results to
differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements herein
include those enumerated in Kinder Morgan’s reports filed with the
Securities and Exchange Commission. Forward-looking statements
speak only as of the date they were made, and except to the extent
required by law, Kinder Morgan undertakes no obligation to update or
review any forward-looking statement because of new information, future
events or other factors. Because of these uncertainties, readers
should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements.
