Spectra wants to reverse N.S.-Boston pipeline
The primary owner of the Maritimes & Northeast natural gas pipeline wants to reverse the direction of its Nova Scotia-to-Boston pipeline, sending gas north from the massive shale deposits producing natural gas in Pennsylvania and New York.
The Portland Press Herald reported the Houston-based Spectra Energy Corp., which owns the pipeline, last week made an “open season” announcement, seeking requests for service and bids from shippers for the project it has dubbed the "Atlantic Bridge Project." The company said it has lined up Unitil as an anchor distributor. Unitil is Maine’s largest gas distributor and also operates in Massachusetts and New Hampshire. Spectra also plans to expand capacity of its Algonquin line, running from New York to Boston, by the end of 2017. The expansion stands to displace the equivalent of 700,000 to 4.2 million gallons of heating oil daily, the newspaper reported, but state officials said it’s too early to tell how much of the expanded pipeline would serve Maine.
A company spokeswoman told the newspaper the plan represents the quickest way to boost the amount of natural gas piped into New England, which leaders of the six New England states have identified as a regional priority that stands to reduce electricity costs. The company has a March 31 deadline to hear back from interested customers for the expansion project.
Separately, Spectra’s announcement raises new questions for a proposal by Downeast LNG for a liquified natural gas import terminal in Robbinston that would use Spectra’s pipeline to ship imported gas south. In a Feb. 6 request, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission asked Downeast to provide an update on the project in light of changes in the volume of natural gas being produced domestically.
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