PennEast Pipeline Project
Shale Law Weekly Review – February 5, 2020
Pipelines: FERC Issues Declaratory Order to Offer Interpretation of Eminent Domain Provision in Natural Gas Act
On January 30, 2020, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) granted in part, and denied in part, a Petition for Declaratory Order filed by PennEast Pipeline Company, LLC on October 4, 2019. In this petition, PennEast Pipeline asked FERC to provide an interpretation of the scope of eminent domain authority under NGA Section 7(h). PennEast initiated this petition after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit ruled on September 10, 2019, that PennEast was barred by the 11th Amendment from suing New Jersey […]
Penn East Pipeline Project – U.S. Court of Appeals Denies Eminent Domain Proceedings by PennEast Pipeline Company, LLC for the Acquisition of New Jersey State-Owned Properties
Written by Chloe Marie – Research Specialist
The PennEast Pipeline Project is a 120-mile expansion project operated by PennEast Pipeline Company, LLC and proposes to transport 1 billion cubic feet (Bcf) per day of natural gas from Dallas, Luzerne County, in northeastern Pennsylvania to the existing Transco’s pipeline interconnection located near Pennington, Mercer County, New Jersey.
PennEast Pipeline Company, LLC filed an application in September 2015 with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to obtain a certificate of public convenience and necessity for the pipeline project. On April 7, 2017, FERC released a Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) and concluded that the approval of […]
Shale Law Weekly Review – November 4, 2019
Production and Operation: Pennsylvania Legislature Passes Bill Allowing Horizontal Cross-Tract Drilling
On October 30, 2019, the Pennsylvania legislature passed Senate Bill No. 694, which would amend the Oil and Gas Lease Act and authorize operators to drill horizontal wellbores across multiple leased tracts. This law would apply only where the operator has a lease with the landowner of each tract, and the operator is required to allocate production among the various landowners. SB 694 has been presented to Governor Tom Wolf but has not yet been signed. If signed, SB 694 would become effective sixty days from enactment.
Pipelines: Landowners […]
Shale Law Weekly Review – October 21, 2019
Pipelines: U.S. Court of Appeals Issues Stay in Case Relating to the Mountain Valley Pipeline
On October 11, 2019, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit stayed the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) Biological Opinion (BiOp) and Incidental Take Statement (ITS) issued in November 2017 for the proposed Mountain Valley Pipeline project, pending the outcome of the case before the court (Wild Virginia, Inc. v. U.S. Dept. of the Interior, No. 19-1866). On August 21, 2019, a group of environmental organizations petitioned the U.S. Court of Appeals, seeking judicial review of these two FWS documents. The petitioners […]
Shale Law Weekly Review – September 17, 2019
Pipelines: Circuit Court Rules PennEast Pipeline Cannot Move Forward on Condemnation Lawsuit Against New Jersey
On September 10, 2019, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit ruled PennEast Pipeline Company (PennEast) was barred by the Eleventh Amendment from bringing a suit against New Jersey to obtain property under eminent domain (In re: PennEast Pipeline Company, LLC, No. 19-1191). PennEast was granted approval for their pipeline project which required access to several properties owned by the state of New Jersey. PennEast filed suit under § 717f(h) of the Natural Gas Act (NGA), which allows the “necessary right-of-way” […]
Shale Law Weekly Review – April 2, 2019
State Regulation: Pennsylvania Bill Amending Well Permit Requirements Advances
On March 26, 2019, House Bill 828 was reported by the Environmental Resources and Energy Committee of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. The bill proposes to amend Title 58 (Oil and Gas) of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes to allow for several changes to the well permitting process. Specifically, the bill would allow drillers to apply for a multi-well pad permit. The bill would also allow drillers to apply for a one-year, two-year, or three-year permit, rather than limiting drillers to a one-year permit. In addition, operators would be allowed to […]
