LNG terminal plans unveiled

Gary Park

Petroleum News Calgary correspondent

A “desperate need” of fuel other than oil in New England has prompted energy consultant Poten & Partners to announce plans for a liquefied natural gas receiving terminal for Fall River, Mass.

Weaver’s Cove LNG, a subsidiary of Poten, will develop the $250 million terminal with capacity for 400 million cubic feet per day, aiming for a late 2007 start-up. If it proceeds, Weaver’s Cove will be the first new LNG facility for the onshore Northeast region, but already the Fall River city council is raising concerns about tanker traffic that would have to pass under two bridges to reach the terminal.

Deliveries would occur every five to seven days by tankers with capacity of up to 145,000 cubic meters.

An official with Weaver’s Cove said the site is ideal because it has access to 68 acres which were previously used by Shell as a marine products terminal, it is a federally designated port and there is easy access to Duke Energy’s Algonquin Natural Gas Pipeline running north from the Gulf of Mexico along the Eastern Seaboard.

In addition, the spokesman noted that five oil-fired power plants are scheduled to close in New England states, creating a vital need for fuel.