The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) last week gave the public more time to comment on the review of a policy document that guides its decisions on approving new interstate gas facilities, including pipelines.
FERC approves projects with Certificates of Public Convenience and Necessity that require the commission to assess the impacts of the project and determine whether or not the proposed new gas infrastructure is needed.
The review comment period, which was scheduled to be closed in less than three weeks, has been extended to 26 May.
Unlike an abruptly abandoned 2018 effort at re-examining its certification policy statement – in which the commission received thousands of public comments but responded with silence – the process is likely to end differently this time, because FERC is signalling a willingness to reconsider previous positions.