Canada’s Pembina Pipeline will not follow through with plans to construct and operate a $10 billion gas liquefaction plant and associated infrastructure planned for the Oregon coast. The company told US regulators this week that challenges in obtaining permits from state agencies related to the project were the deciding factors in the move to scrap the project. The company asked the US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to cancel authorizations for the LNG terminal and associated Pacific Connector pipeline, which would have carried natural gas from Canada to the proposed facility in Coos Bay, Oregon.
“Among other considerations, applicants remain concerned regarding their ability to obtain the necessary state permits in the immediate future in addition to other external obstacles,” Pembina said in a brief to FERC.
The proposed Jordan Cove LNG export terminal had a planned capacity of 7.8 mtpa. The design also includes a 229-mile, 36-in.- diameter pipeline from the facility to Malin, a city in Klamath County near the border between Oregon and California. The expected startup date had slipped for the project and was last thought to be ready for deliveries sometime in 2025.
Since its initial proposal in 2007, Jordan Cove had been contested by landowners, environmental groups, indigenous communities, and Oregon state officials. Opponents voiced concerns over the project’s climate change contributions, impacts on tribal territories and waterways, and consequences for tourism and fishing industries.
The project had been unsuccessful in securing a water quality certification and authorizations under the Coastal Zone Management Act from the state. Earlier this year, FERC declined Pembina’s petition to waive the state’s regulatory authority.
Pembina, which acquired the project in 2017 when it took over rival Veresen, hit pause on the development of Jordan Cove this past April, while the company reassessed the impact of recent regulatory decisions.
A notice on the Jordan Cove website read: “While we continue to believe in the strategic rationale of Jordan Cove, in light of current regulatory and political uncertainty, our decision reflects our steadfast commitment to our financial guardrails, our disciplined and prudent approach to capital allocation, and our commitment to comprehensively mitigating risk on this project.”
Pembina had yet to announce any takeaway contracts related to LNG volumes from the Jordan Cove project.
