Latest news with #WilliamsCos
E&E News
07-08-2025
- Politics
- E&E News
Zeldin slams ‘overreach' for halting Constitution pipeline
EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin bashed 'overreach' and 'climate zealots' for blocking a pipeline in New York and called for its construction to begin in order to secure New England's grid stability. In an op-ed published Monday in The Boston Globe, the agency administrator placed blame on Democratic former Gov. Andrew Cuomo of New York and other lawmakers for impeding the project. The Constitution pipeline, a project by the Northeast Supply Enhancement, was first proposed in 2012 and approved by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission in 2014. In 2016, however, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation denied developer Williams Cos. a water quality certification under Section 401 of the Clean Water Act, halting construction. Advertisement Zeldin cited New England's reliance on natural gas and high energy prices as reasons to divert from natural gas imported by Canada and build the pipeline. He wrote that the pipeline's construction could bring 'grid stability, create jobs, and reduce energy prices across the region for American families who have suffered long enough.'
Bloomberg
05-08-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Williams CEO Sees LNG Taking Up More Than 25% of US Gas Market
Williams Cos., one of the world's largest pipeline operators, projects liquid natural gas will expand to become more than 25% of the US gas market in the next decade. The energy infrastructure company also sees years of robust demand for the fuel, which currently makes up about 15% of the market, according to Chief Executive Officer Chad Zamarin.
Boston Globe
05-08-2025
- Business
- Boston Globe
Building the Constitution Pipeline is vital for New England's grid stability
In 2016, the Cuomo administration New England residents now pay a premium for foreign energy supplies instead. At any given hour, Advertisement New England imports most of that natural gas from Canada, and it imports liquified natural gas from as far away as How did we get here? In 2012, the Constitution Pipeline was But in 2016, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation denied pipeline developer Williams Cos. a water quality certification under Section 401 of the Clean Water Act, which the statute places largely under the purview of states. Advertisement After much legal wrangling, in 2020, Williams Cos. abandoned the critical infrastructure project. Cuomo and his allies argued pipeline would stymie renewable energy development in New York. This was an overreach of statutory power. Perhaps ironically, New England has become a casualty of New York's decisions. The siren song of climate zealots has derailed American infrastructure projects. And residents pay the price, literally. It's time to build the Constitution Pipeline Massachusetts consumes much more electricity than it generates. Though the state runs on the cheapest source of baseload power — natural gas — it had the third-highest residential electricity prices in the nation in 2023, in large part because of lack of infrastructure. Meanwhile, Infrastructure constraints have also threatened grid reliability as ISO-NE, the region's grid operator, scrambles for natural gas to produce reliable affordable and constant supplies of baseload power in an ever-growing market. The region's last two operational coal-fired power plants are set to close by 2028 and be replaced with solar power plants and battery storage that can't provide baseload power during harsh New England winters. Harsh winters mean high heating bills, which are expected to rise over the next decade without adequate infrastructure. Advertisement I have been meeting with communities in all six states that comprise New England, which also represent EPA Region 1. Businesses and industry leaders are optimistic and ready to invest in innovation, manufacturing, and artificial intelligence. But they recognize the need for more power generation and the underlying infrastructure to support it, to support the growth of industry across New England. Under the Trump administration, the EPA has worked to remove hurdles to critical infrastructure expansion to achieve energy dominance and strengthen national security. Right now, we are working to assess whether it is necessary to clarify the guide rails of states' abilities under the Clean Water Act Section 401 to deny water quality certification. The EPA has initiated a public comment period, which includes States should not block critical energy infrastructure in the name of climate change, as New York's former governor did. And states like New York should not have veto authority to dictate energy policy for, and increase energy costs of, other states. New England should come together to support American energy infrastructure, including the Constitution Pipeline project, to provide much-needed grid stability, create jobs, and reduce energy prices across the region for American families who have suffered long enough.
E&E News
28-07-2025
- Business
- E&E News
Two pipelines, one path: Will FERC approve both?
Two energy giants plan to build natural gas pipelines in the same place — setting the stage for a high-stakes squabble in the Southeast. Both Williams Cos. and Mountain Valley Pipeline are trying to lay new pipe along Williams' existing Transco line in southern Virginia and North Carolina to meet growing energy demand. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission could approve both. But Williams has argued that its pipeline is big enough to handle all planned volumes of natural gas — prompting Mountain Valley to bristle at the implication that its Southgate project isn't necessary. Advertisement 'It seems as though Transco is attempting to undercut MVP Southgate,' Ian Heming, a natural gas analyst at East Daley Analytics, said in a recent interview. That is noteworthy in the world of energy permitting. While FERC is required to consider whether a pipeline is needed, the agency generally defines need as whether companies have committed to buying the gas the line would carry. Williams has cast a broader net, telling FERC in a short filing this month that the company could tack on Southgate's 'incremental' volumes by adding meter tubes and regulation at an existing station. The companies' push to build the pipelines comes as electricity demand across the United States is forecast to surge in the coming years. That includes the Southeast, where utilities are looking to build new fossil fuel plants to power a growing population and planned data centers. Both Williams' and Mountain Valley's projects cite that demand at the heart of their proposals. Both companies are proposing to build about 30 miles of pipe along Williams' massive Gulf-to-New York Transco gas pipeline system. Both pipelines — MVP Southgate and the Eden Loop segment of Williams' Southeast Supply Enhancement Project (SSEP) — would start at the same point near Chatham, Virginia, and end near Eden, North Carolina. FERC is planning to release environmental assessments of both projects this fall, with the review for Williams' SSEP slated for November and the analysis for MVP Southgate scheduled for October. What's not being considered is the interest of ratepayers, said Shelley Robbins, senior decarbonization manager at the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy. Her group doesn't think either pipeline is needed — and has safety concerns about plans to have the two lines repeatedly cross each other and the Transco main line. But Robbins said regulators don't seem to be looking at any advantages of building one pipe instead of two. 'In theory, that's cheaper,' Robbins said. But, she added, 'the utilities and the pipeline companies make money building big things.' Dueling projects Building both pipelines would create a 30-mile corridor with up to six high-pressure gas lines running next to each other. The Transco system already includes as many as four parallel pipelines in that area. The MVP Southgate project aims to move gas from the end of the main Mountain Valley pipeline — where it connects to Transco in Virginia — to Eden, North Carolina. Another company is building a 45-mile pipeline from that point east to a planned Duke Energy natural gas-fired power plant near Roxboro, North Carolina. FERC approved Southgate in 2020, but Mountain Valley submitted an application in February to amend the expansion project by shrinking the pipeline's length and increasing its diameter. The entire length of the proposed Southgate project now runs next to Williams' Transco pipeline. In total, Williams' Transco Southeast Supply Enhancement project would add approximately 55 miles of new pipe in two segments in parts of Virginia and North Carolina, as well as new compressor units. One 24-mile segment, the Salem Loop, cuts between the North Carolina cities of Winston-Salem and Greensboro. The other, the 30-mile Eden Loop, straddles the North Carolina-Virginia border and follows the same path of MVP Southgate. It's unclear if Williams will ultimately decide to expand the capacity of the Eden Loop. But the company is essentially arguing in its FERC filings that it has the ability to expand and then 'would be able to essentially hold its almost full monopoly on gas into North Carolina, and that's what its goal is here,' said Heming at East Daley Analytics. Mountain Valley, however, is asserting that the Southgate project would provide a needed redundancy to utilities that are supplying gas to North Carolina residents. 'The market has spoken, and shippers are asking for a pipeline alternative to Transco to support increased competition for transportation services in the region, and to provide critically needed natural gas pipeline capacity and diversity of supply to the region,' Mountain Valley told FERC in a July 11 letter. Mountain Valley included supportive comments from the Public Service Co. of North Carolina and Duke Energy, two utilities that have signed contracts for the project's full capacity. MVP Southgate spokesperson Shawn Day said the amended project gives North Carolina a diverse energy supply and resilience. 'While Transco may not like competition, the market does,' Day said in a statement. 'The vast majority of North Carolina's natural gas supply has historically been controlled by a single provider,' Day said. 'For years, the North Carolina Utilities Commission has recognized the state needs an additional interstate natural gas transmission provider to diversify the state's natural gas supply and promote competition.' Williams said it will continue to engage with parties like Mountain Valley to ensure the Southeast Supply Enhancement Project can deliver energy. 'We acknowledge that there is a market desire for a second interstate pipeline to bring supplies into North Carolina,' Williams said in an emailed statement. The company did not respond to subsequent questions for clarity on whether it believes the Southgate line is necessary. A demonstrated need? The Trump administration's pro-fossil-fuel agenda makes it more likely that FERC would green-light MVP Southgate and 'provide that redundant gas supply, rather than have it be integrated into Transco's Southeast Supply Enhancement,' Heming said. FERC, though, has stayed mum. Asked after last month's FERC meeting whether both pipelines are needed, Chair Mark Christie (R) said he couldn't comment because the applications for the two pipeline projects are still pending. 'The question of need under the Natural Gas Act is always a central question of any NGA application, so I can't talk about either one of them,' Christie said. FERC spokesperson Celeste Miller subsequently declined to comment on questions about the two pipeline projects. At least one environmental group, meanwhile, said both pipeline projects are unnecessary. 'We don't accept that there is a shown need for the projects, and it's part of this broader over-expansion of fossil fuel infrastructure to serve data centers and [artificial intelligence],' said Jessica Sims, Virginia field coordinator for the group Appalachian Voices. Sims, who was involved in the fight against the main Mountain Valley pipeline, said she hopes that neither project will get approved. 'I hope that the uniqueness of the co-located routes and the types of conversations that we're seeing in the docket would lead [FERC] to consider cumulative impacts in this circumstance,' Sims said.
Reuters
30-06-2025
- Business
- Reuters
US energy firms eye new Northeast natgas pipelines, buoyed by Trump and demand outlook
June 30 (Reuters) - U.S. energy companies are eying renewed opportunities to build natural gas pipelines to tap in to Appalachia shale formations in Pennsylvania, Ohio and West Virginia, buoyed by U.S. President Donald Trump's pro-energy policies and expectations that demand for the fuel will rise in coming years. The U.S. is already the world's top gas producer and exporter of liquefied natural gas. While the country helps meet fuel demand around the world, many consumers in the U.S. Northeast do not have access to gas due to a lack of pipeline infrastructure and instead continue to use heating oil in their homes and businesses. The Appalachia shale fields, which cover the Marcellus and Utica formations, have the largest gas reserves in the U.S., but energy companies have limited ability to move more of that fuel to the rest of the country because most existing pipelines are already near full. In addition, companies have found it tough to build new projects in the region due to legal and regulatory pushback from states and local and environmental groups. Output growth in the region, which produces about a third of the nation's gas, has stalled in recent years after some firms lost billions on delayed or canceled pipes. But now, as Trump rolls back regulations to boost domestic energy production, several U.S. firms, including Williams Cos (WMB.N), opens new tab, Boardwalk Pipeline, DT Midstream (DTM.N), opens new tab and EQT (EQT.N), opens new tab, have proposed building or expanding pipelines and other infrastructure in the Northeast. "We are actively evaluating opportunities to expand infrastructure," Amy Rogers, spokeswoman at EQT, the nation's second-biggest gas producer with operations in Appalachia, told Reuters. "Enhancing pipeline capacity is essential to unlocking Appalachian supply," she said. In 2024, the U.S. produced about 103.2 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) of gas and consumed a record 90.5 bcfd of the fuel, according to U.S. Energy Information Administration data. One billion cubic feet of gas is enough to supply about 5 million U.S. homes for a day. Analysts expect that new LNG export plants and electric generation facilities to power artificial intelligence at data centers will push U.S. power and gas demand to record highs in 2025 and 2026 and beyond. Output from Appalachia has increased every year since at least 2009 when the region produced just 1.7 bcfd of gas. Lack of pipeline capacity, however, has slowed that growth to an average of just 2% a year from 2020 to 2024 versus an average of 15% a year from 2015 to 2019, according to EIA data. Looking forward, output in the region is expected to grow by an average of only 1% a year in 2025 and 2026 - to 36.2 bcfd and 36.6 bcfd, respectively - according to EIA projections. New infrastructure, coupled with growing energy needs in the U.S., could add up to 5 bcfd of new demand for Appalachia gas supplies through 2030, said Jack Weixel, an analyst with consultancy East Daley Analytics. "That is definitely a lot more than anyone was expecting from Appalachia just a mere 12 months ago," he said. Support from the Trump administration has already prompted pipeline operator Williams to begin reviving two canceled projects to transport gas from Pennsylvania: the 0.65 bcfd Constitution Pipeline to New York and the 0.4 bcfd Northeast Supply Enhancement to New Jersey and New York. "The NESE and Constitution projects are essential to address persistent natural gas supply constraints in the Northeast, constraints that have led to higher energy costs for consumers," said a spokesperson for Williams. During the winter of 2024-2025, it cost about twice as much to heat a home with oil than with gas, according to federal energy estimates. More than 80% of the roughly 4.6 million U.S. homes still using heating oil as their primary heating fuel in 2024 were located in the Northeast region. Williams canceled Constitution in 2020 and NESE in 2024 after years of fighting for permits, especially water permits, from state regulators. State environmental regulators in New York and New Jersey did not comment directly on Williams filings to revive the NESE project, which runs through both states. In New York, Millennium Pipeline, meanwhile, said it plans to begin negotiations for binding commitments for a proposed expansion that could add up to 0.5 bcfd of capacity to its existing 2.0 bcfd pipe. High interest from shippers underscored the need for additional pipeline capacity in the region, Millennium said, which anticipates that the expansion, if approved by its owners, could start service by late 2029. Millennium is owned by units of DT Midstream and Canadian energy firm TC Energy ( opens new tab. Meanwhile, EQT and partners want to extend their existing 2.0 bcfd Mountain Valley Pipeline from West Virginia to Virginia into North Carolina with the proposed 0.55 bcfd Southgate expansion project. The $7.85 billion Mountain Valley Pipeline, which entered service in 2024 and whose construction cost was more than twice the amount originally planned, was the last big pipeline to enter service in the Northeast region after years of delays. In Ohio, Boardwalk Pipelines said it is evaluating interest for its proposed Borealis pipeline project, which could create up to 2.0 bcfd of incremental transportation to markets from Ohio to Louisiana. Still, despite Trump's pro-energy policies, some of the same headwinds pipeline projects faced in the past are likely to resurface. Several organizations, including the Sierra Club environmental group, have already filed protests against Williams' NESE with the U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, which oversees federal permitting of gas pipeline projects. "The Northeast does not need more gas pipelines that pollute our neighborhoods and leave us vulnerable to price spikes from global volatility, especially as gas demand locally is already beginning to wane," Jasmine Vazin, director of the Beyond Dirty Fuels campaign at the Sierra Club, told Reuters in an email. The following table lists the gas pipes in various stages of development in recent years that could move more fuel from the Appalachia region.
