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FERC Grants MVP Request to Double Transportation Rates

The 303-mile Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) project will be completed and go online sometime in the first quarter of 2024 (see Equitrans Admits the Obvious – MVP Won’t be Online Until 2024). In September of this year, MVP filed a request with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to amend its original certificate (that established the rates it could charge) to increase the rates it charges for new customers (not existing/already contracted customers). Earlier this week, FERC granted MVP’s request to raise rates.
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Out-of-State Protester Gets Jail for Blocking MVP Construction

Emily Adamski of Calif.

Appalachians Against Pipelines, a group backed with big money from Big Green, funnels paid “protesters” to construction sites for the 95% completed Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP), mainly in Montgomery County, Va., who chain themselves to equipment requiring state troopers to carefully remove them (requiring hours), slowing the already challenging work to complete the project. About 25 such protesters showed up at a Montgomery County construction site in October. Three of them chained themselves to equipment using “sleeping dragon” devices (see 3 Out-of-State Protesters Arrested for Blocking MVP Construction). One of them, Emily Adamski, 37, of Oakland, California, just received a three-month jail sentence for her illegal stunt. About darned time!
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U.S. Supremes Deny Emergency Request by Va. Landowners to Stop MVP

A small group of uppity Virginia landowners don’t want Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) crossing their horse pastures, leaving a mark. So they conspired with Big Green lawyers in a lawsuit challenging the right of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to use eminent domain to build pipelines across private land. In October, the landowners filed an “emergency” request with the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, asking the court to block MVP construction while the eminent domain lawsuit grinds on. The D.C. Circuit judges rejected that request in October (see DC Circuit Denies Anti Request to Block MVP Construction in Va.). Since Big Green has endless piles of cash to finance legal actions, they decided to appeal (once again) to the U.S. Supreme Court. Last week the uppity landowners and their Big Green lawyers asked the Supremes for an emergency block on MVP construction. Yesterday, the Supremes rejected them.
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MVP Gets FERC Permission to Drill 24/7 Under Interstate 81 in Va.

More progress to report on finishing the 94% completed (now likely closer to 97% completed) Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) project. MVP needs to cross under Interstate 81 in Montgomery County, VA, and it’s no small challenge to drill under the highway because it’s solid rock. On Oct. 13, MVP (being built by Equitrans Midstream) filed a request with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to drill 24 hours a day, seven days a week, on the I-81 crossing. Last Tuesday, FERC approved it, although the approval comes with a few strings attached, like using special lights and monitoring noise levels.
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Dominion LNG Storage for Va. Power Plant Exempt from FERC Regs

On November 16, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) agreed to Dominion Energy subsidiary Virginia Electric and Power Company’s petition requesting that FERC declare Dominion’s planned LNG production, storage, and regasification facility in Greensville County, VA, would be exempt from FERC jurisdiction under section 7 of the Natural Gas Act (NGA). The project includes a 25-million-gallon LNG storage tank, 15 million cubic feet per day (MMcf/d) of liquefaction capacity, 500 MMcf/d regasification capacity, pretreatment facilities, and associated station yard piping.
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Columbia, Williams SE Va. Pipe Projects Get FERC Approval to Build

In August 2022, Columbia Gas Transmission (a subsidiary of TC Energy) filed an application with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to build the Virginia Reliability Project (VRP), which includes two new compressor units and the replacement of existing pipeline (see Columbia Files w/FERC to Replace 48 Miles of Pipe in Southeast Va.). VRP will add 100 MMcf/d of incremental capacity on Columbia’s system to service delivery points in southeast Virginia, namely for Virginia Natural Gas. The Columbia project works hand-in-glove with another project by a different company. Williams’ Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line (Transco) asked FERC if it could add new pipeline in an existing right-of-way and one new compressor station (see Transco Pipe Seeks to Build New Compressor Boosting Flows in Va.). The Commonwealth Energy Connector Project, as it is called, will build six miles of new pipeline within Transco’s existing right-of-way in Virginia, expand a meter station, and build a 30,500 hp electric motor-drive compressor. Both projects (considered together by FERC) were approved by FERC’s commissioners in an order issued last Thursday.
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Big Green Packs Hearing to Oppose Va. Chesterfield Peaker Plant

Dominion Energy, a huge utility company headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, recently revived a plan to build four small “peaker” electric generating plants in Chesterfield County, VA, a Richmond suburb (see Dominion Plans to Build 1,000-MW Gas Peaker Plant Near Richmond, VA). The Chesterfield Energy Reliability Center in the James River Industrial Center calls for building four 250-megawatt gas-fired power plants (1,000 MW total) that can jump into action during the coldest and hottest days of the year to help supply enough electricity for 250,000 homes. Last Thursday, Dominion held a public hearing in Chester about the proposed plan. The usual bought-and-paid-for antis showed up to declare this project is racist and should not get built.
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Equitrans Says MVP Will Become One of Most Valuable Pipes in U.S.

Equitrans Midstream issued its third quarter update yesterday. As you might expect, there was much talk about completing the nearly-done Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) project. Near the top of Equitrans’ 3Q official update is this comment from CEO Thomas Karam: “Once in-service, there is little doubt MVP will be one of the most valuable pipelines in the U.S., directly connecting our country’s largest and lowest-cost natural gas resource and the rapidly growing demand of the mid-Atlantic and southeast markets.” MVP remains on track to be completed and online in 1Q24. We learned a few new details about MVP from the update. However, MVP wasn’t the only hot topic during yesterday’s update. We have new info about the Rager Mountain Natural Gas Storage Field incident, Ohio Valley Connector Expansion Project, and MVP Southgate.
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DC Circuit Denies Anti Request to Block MVP Construction in Va.

Shrill antis have their answer from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia (D.C. Circuit) in a request to (once again) shut down construction on the Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP): NO! A small group of uppity Virginia landowners don’t want MVP crossing their horse pastures, leaving a mark. So they conspired with Big Green lawyers in a lawsuit challenging the right of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to use eminent domain to build pipelines across private land.
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Shrill Antis Get More Shrill Asking Court to Block MVP Construction

A long-running lawsuit filed by Big Green groups using (abusing) a small group of uppity Virginia landowners argues the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) had no right to delegate authority to Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) to use eminent domain to cross land, including the land owned by the small group of uppity landowners in Virginia. Big Green and the uppity landowners filed an emergency request last Tuesday with the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, asking that the construction of MVP be stopped while the lawsuit continues to play out (see Desperate Antis Ask DC Circuit to Block MVP Construction 1 More Time). Big Green is back, breathlessly claiming MVP has sped up its activity near the uppity landowners to try and get all of the construction done before the court can block it.
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Desperate Antis Ask DC Circuit to Block MVP Construction 1 More Time

A long-running lawsuit filed by Big Green groups using (abusing) a small group of uppity Virginia landowners argues the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) had no right to delegate authority to Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) to use eminent domain to cross land, including the land owned by the small group of uppity landowners in Virginia. Earlier this year, the U.S. Supreme Court made the mistake of keeping the lawsuit alive, remanding it to a lower court (see US Supreme Court Keeps MVP Eminent Domain Case Alive in Lower Court). Big Green and the uppity landowners filed an emergency request on Tuesday with the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, asking that the construction of MVP be stopped while the lawsuit continues to play out.
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3 Out-of-State Protesters Arrested for Blocking MVP Construction

Multiple people arrested in connection to protests tied to the Mountain Valley Pipeline. (Credit: Appalachians Against Pipelines)

This is growing tiresome. Appalachians Against Pipelines, a group backed with big money from Big Green, continues to funnel paid “protesters” to construction sites for the 95% completed Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP), mainly in Montgomery County, Va., who chain themselves to equipment requiring state troopers to carefully remove them (requiring hours), slowing the already challenging work to complete the project. And then local county judges don’t do anything to stop it (see Va. County Judge Refuses to Stop Illegal Activities of MVP Protesters). About 25 protesters showed up at a Montgomery County construction site yet again yesterday. Three of them — every one of them from out of state — chained themselves to equipment (using “sleeping dragon” devices). All three were arrested and removed, but at the cost of yet another delay.
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MVP Hits Construction Challenges – Will it Get Done in 2023?

Since work resumed in midsummer, 92 stream crossings had been completed through Oct. 1 for the 303-mile Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) project, according to MVP spokeswoman Natalie Cox. About 330 crossings remain. Can the company realistically complete the rest of the work and get the pipeline operational by Dec. 31 (less than three months away)? That’s the multi-billion-dollar question. Some 4,200 construction workers are actively working on getting it done. It doesn’t help that highly organized “protests” are being inflicted on the project by Big Green-backed groups like Appalachians Against Pipeline.
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Va. County Judge Refuses to Stop Illegal Activities of MVP Protesters

Emily Satterwhite, who teaches Appalachian studies at Virginia Tech and has been engaged in illegal activities against the Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) going back more than five years (see our previous stories about Satterwhite here). Satterwhite continues to encourage others to join illegal MVP construction blockades. On Friday, MVP asked a Montgomery County judge to slap an injunction on Satterwhite to prevent this sort of lawless activity, but the judge was too timid to act.
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MVP Protesters Block Construction in Jefferson National Forest

MVP protesters from Monday (click for larger version)

Radicalized protesters who have been brainwashed (and paid) by Big Green liars continue their campaign to prevent the construction of the final 5% or so of the Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP). This past Saturday, a protester calling himself Mickey, from the group Appalachians Against Pipelines, locked his arms in a “sleeping dragon” device, blocking construction in that area for most of the day. On Monday, another paid protester from Appalachians Against Pipelines pulled the same stunt. This one called himself Ben. Apparently, Ben (as of this morning) is still locked and in place. The area being targeted by these wackadoodles is Giles County, Va., in the Jefferson National Forest.
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MVP Cuts Deal with PHMSA for Third-Party Inspections of Pipe Coating

The left thought it had won the Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) battle with three colluding (corrupt) and sympathetic judges from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit (4th Circuit). But then Congress, under the leadership of House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, passed the “debt ceiling” bill that forces the completion of MVP (see Equitrans Announces Mountain Valley Pipe to Get Completed in 2023). The left tried one last Hail Mary, challenging the law itself in the sympathetic 4th Circuit. But the U.S. Supreme Court stepped in and stopped the nonsense (see Supreme Court Overturns 4th Circuit, MVP to Restart Construction). However, the creative left wasn’t done with its efforts to defeat MVP.
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