A major energy developer has been given the go-ahead to proceed with a natural gas expansion project in the Pacific Northwest by the country’s top energy regulator.
The so-called Gas Transmission Northwest XPress Project (GTNXP), which would update three current compressor stations and enhance capacity on an existing system that has been transporting natural gas for decades, received a certificate from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) on Thursday.
Labor unions, GOP lawmakers from Oregon, Idaho, and Washington, as well as GTNXP developer TC Energy, have all urged FERC to grant the certificate.
The $75 million project, according to TC Energy’s application submitted to FERC in October 2021, will use existing infrastructure to boost GTN’s incremental mainline capacity by 150,000 dekatherms per day, which is sufficient to power about 500,000 more homes in the area.
Customers in California are served by the operating GTN pipeline, which passes via Idaho, Washington, and Oregon.
The demand for natural gas transportation on the GTN pipeline system has climbed 26% in recent years while local natural gas output has decreased.
The project, which mostly entails software and other modifications to TC Energy’s current infrastructure, is being undertaken at this time.
The pipeline offers vital gas supplies to utility firms, who then supply energy to consumers in the residential, commercial, and industrial sectors.
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