[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 9 (Monday, January 14, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 1753-1754]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-835]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

[Docket No. CP02-56-000]


Southern Natural Gas Company; Notice of Application

January 7, 2002.
    Take notice that on December 26, 2001, Southern Natural Gas Company 
(Southern), P.O. Box 2563, Birmingham, Alabama 35202-2563, filed an 
application pursuant to Section 7(b) of the Natural Gas Act (NGA) and 
Sections 157.7 and 157.14 of the Commission regulations for approval of 
Southern's abandonment of capacity by sale to SCG Pipeline, Inc. (SCG), 
all as more thoroughly described in the application on file with the 
Commission and open to public inspection. This filing may be viewed on 
the Web at http://www.ferc.gov using the ``RIMS'' link, select ``Docket 
#'' and follow the instructions (please call (202) 208-2222 for 
assistance).
    Southern proposes to abandon by sale to SCG an undivided interest 
in two parallel 30-inch diameter pipelines owned and operated by 
Southern equal to 190,000 Mcf per day of capacity from the tailgate of 
the liquefied natural gas facility of Southern LNG, Inc., on Elba 
Island in Chatham County, Georgia (LNG Facility) to an interconnection 
to be constructed with the pipeline facilities of SCG at Southern's 
meter station near Port Wentworth in Chatham County, Georgia (Twin 
30s). Southern states that this sale of capacity in the Twin 30s is 
being proposed in conjunction with an overall project by SCG to 
construct a pipeline system from the LNG Facility to Jasper County, 
South Carolina, pursuant to an application SCG filed concurrently with 
the Commission in Docket Nos. CP02-57-000, CP02-58-000, and CP02-59-
000.
    Southern states that the capacity of the Twin 30s is approximately 
1,250,000 Mcf per day and greatly exceeds the maximum daily 
vaporization rate of the LNG Facility. Further, Southern states that 
this demonstrates that even after the sale of 190,000 Mcf per day of 
capacity to SCG, Southern will still retain more than enough capacity 
on the Twin 30s for Southern to take the entire deliverability from the 
LNG Facility that its downstream facilities are capable of accepting. 
Southern states that it will continue to operate the Twin 30s.
    Southern states that it intends to sell the capacity to SCG for the 
percentage equivalent represented by the amount of capacity being sold 
multiplied by the depreciated book value of the Twin 30s as of the 
first day of the month in which the closing occurs. Southern states 
that the current capacity of the Twin 30s is 1,250,000 Mcf per day and 
190,000 Mcf per day or 15.2 percent of that capacity is being sold, so 
that is the percentage that will be multiplied by the book value to 
determine the purchase price. Southern proposes to reduce its net plant 
by the amount of capital received from its sale of capacity in the Twin 
30s and that the reduction will be reflected in Southern's next Section 
4 rate case.
    Any questions regarding the application should be directed to 
Patrick B. Pope, General Counsel, Southern Natural Gas Company, P.O. 
Box 2563, Birmingham, Alabama 35202-2563 at (205) 325-7126.
    There are two ways to become involved in the Commission's review of 
this project. First, any person wishing to obtain legal status by 
becoming a party

[[Page 1754]]

to the proceedings for this project should, on or before January 28, 
2002, file with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, 888 First 
Street, NE, Washington, DC 20426, a motion to intervene in accordance 
with the requirements of the Commission's Rules of Practice and 
Procedure (18 CFR 385.214 or 385.211) and the Regulations under the NGA 
(18 CFR 157.10). A person obtaining party status will be placed on the 
service list maintained by the Secretary of the Commission and will 
receive copies of all documents filed by the applicant and by all other 
parties. A party must submit 14 copies of filings made with the 
Commission and must mail a copy to the applicant and to every other 
party in the proceeding. Only parties to the proceeding can ask for 
court review of Commission orders in the proceeding.
    However, a person does not have to intervene in order to have 
comments considered. The second way to participate is by filing with 
the Secretary of the Commission, as soon as possible, an original and 
two copies of comments in support of or in opposition to this project. 
The Commission will consider these comments in determining the 
appropriate action to be taken, but the filing of a comment alone will 
not serve to make the filer a party to the proceeding. The Commission's 
rules require that persons filing comments in opposition to the project 
provide copies of their protests only to the party or parties directly 
involved in the protest.
    Persons who wish to comment only on the environmental review of 
this project should submit an original and two copies of their comments 
to the Secretary of the Commission. Environmental commenters will be 
placed on the Commission's environmental mailing list, will receive 
copies of the environmental documents, and will be notified of meetings 
associated with the Commission's environmental review process. 
Environmental commenters will not be required to serve copies of filed 
documents on all other parties. However, the non-party commenters will 
not receive copies of all documents filed by other parties or issued by 
the Commission (except for the mailing of environmental documents 
issued by the Commission) and will not have the right to seek court 
review of the Commission's final order.
    The Commission may issue a preliminary determination on non-
environmental issues prior to the completion of its review of the 
environmental aspects of the project. This preliminary determination 
typically considers such issues as the need for the project and its 
economic effect on existing customers of the applicant, on other 
pipelines in the area, and on landowners and communities. For example, 
the Commission considers the extent to which the applicant may need to 
exercise eminent domain to obtain rights-of-way for the proposed 
project and balances that against the non-environmental benefits to be 
provided by the project. Therefore, if a person has comments on 
community and landowner impacts from this proposal, it is important 
either to file comments or to intervene as early in the process as 
possible.
    Comments, protests and interventions may be filed electronically 
via the Internet in lieu of paper. See, 18 CFR 385.2001(a)(1)(iii) and 
the instructions on the Commission's Web site under the ``e-Filing'' 
link.
    If the Commission decides to set the application for a formal 
hearing before an Administrative Law Judge, the Commission will issue 
another notice describing that process. At the end of the Commission's 
review process, a final Commission order approving or denying a 
certificate will be issued.

C.B. Spencer,
Acting Secretary.
[FR Doc. 02-835 Filed 1-11-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6717-01-P