The construction-free first stage of an expansion of the Portland Natural Gas Transmission System LP pipeline system made rapid progress through the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission review process as staff declared the project would not have any effect on the environment.
In a June 7 environmental assessment, FERC staff found that the first of three phases of the TransCanada Corp. company's Portland XPress project would not involve the environment since it did not require construction, modifications or ground disturbance on the existing system or at border-crossing facilities. The first phase involves a request for an increase in authorized gas transportation capacity of almost 40,000 Mcf/d on its system from New Hampshire to Maine and another 1,641 Mcf/d on a Maine-to-Massachusetts pipeline jointly owned by Portland Natural Gas Transmission System, or PNGTS, and Maritimes & Northeast Pipeline LLC, which is majority-owned by Enbridge Inc.'s Spectra Energy Partners LP.
PNGTS applied for the first phase April 20. It submitted an application for the second phase May 7. The second phase would also not require construction or modifications to system facilities.
In its application for the first phase, PNGTS also asked for an amended presidential permit that would allow it to increase gas import and export capacity from 210,000 Mcf/d to 274,216 Mcf/d at facilities at the U.S.-Canada border in New Hampshire. (FERC docket CP18-251)
