The EQT Corp.-led developers for the 2-Bcf/d Mountain Valley natural gas pipeline asked the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission for authorization to work without a break on a portion of the project to meet the service date.

Project developers asked FERC to allow them to work on a compressor station in Wetzel County, W.Va., for 24 hours per day through May 31. In the March 22 request for a construction variance, Mountain Valley said nighttime noise levels would be higher than daytime levels due to the use of a rock crusher but would still fall below the FERC-mandated limit.

EQT spokesperson Natalie Cox said the nonstop work would help keep the $3.7 billion project on schedule for the late-2018 in-service date.

The project has encountered challenges, including a West Virginia county court's decision to allow protesters to remain in trees near the pipeline's route.

The commission authorized construction of the 300-mile pipeline Jan. 22. The project, which received a certificate order in October 2017, is a joint venture of EQT Midstream Partners LP, NextEra Energy Inc., RGC Resources Inc., WGL Holdings Inc. and Consolidated Edison Inc. (FERC docket CP16-10)