FERC concerned about delay in studies

Kristen Nelson

Petroleum News

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission told Congress in its 12th report on progress on licensing and constructing an Alaska natural gas pipeline, issued Aug. 25, that it continues to be concerned about gaps in data needed for the filing of TransCanada Alaska’s FERC application.

“One such gap is the data necessary to support an evaluation of the project’s potential impact on subsistence and subsistence users,” FERC said.

The commission said it is concerned that delaying initiation of studies that require more than a single year of data gathering and analysis, such as updating subsistence databases, could also delay filing of a complete application. The report notes that TransCanada Alaska has a commitment to the State of Alaska under the Alaska Gasline Inducement Act to file its FERC application in October 2012.

The commission said its staff recommended that TC Alaska begin subsistence surveys in the 2010-11 winter season. The report said TC Alaska has told FERC it would begin the surveys in the 2011-12 winter season “and is developing a strategy to acquire the necessary information in the time available.”

FERC staff and representatives of other federal and state agencies attended technical workshops in Anchorage sponsored by TC Alaska in March. The commission said the workshops were designed to familiarize agency personnel with TC Alaska’s proposed natural gas pipeline construction practices, including right-of-way preparation and maintenance and practices for crossing water bodies.

Between March and June commission staff participated in 24 public open house meetings held by TC Alaska throughout the project area.

FERC opened the National Environmental Policy Act scoping process in August by issuing a notice of intent to prepare an environmental impact state and request for comments on environmental issues.

FERC said TC Alaska continues to analyze data collected in the 2010 field season and has a 2011 summer field data gathering season under way, with physical, biological and cultural resource crews working through the summer. TC Alaska has also mobilized crews for its 2011 summer engineering field program, including geologic fault delineation, compressor station site reconnaissance and the refinement of pipeline routing. “Technology development programs, including frost heave and uplift resistance testing and tensile and strain capacity modeling, are continuing as well,” the commission said.

FERC said TransCanada Corp. and ExxonMobil are continuing the commercial process, field studies and public engagement necessary for the Canadian segment of the line, with Canada’s Northern Pipeline Agency continuing to coordinate actions of other Canadian federal agencies and to engage with the governments of British Columbia and Yukon.

FERC said the NPA has initiated the process, including consultations with nine Yukon First Nations, to extend the term of the Foothills pipeline right-of-way easement agreement beyond the current expiration date of Sept. 20, 2012.

The commission said progress has occurred on the TC Alaska project since the last report, but both the Office of the Federal Coordinator and FERC have identified issues that TC Alaska “must work diligently to resolve” to meet its deadline of filing a complete application with FERC in October 2012.