[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 74 (Monday, April 18, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 22585-22586]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-08884]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
[FE Docket No. 16-22-CGL]
SeaOne Gulfport, LLC; Application for Long-Term, Multi-Contract
Authorization To Export Natural Gas Contained in Compressed Gas Liquid
to Non-Free Trade Agreement Countries
AGENCY: Office of Fossil Energy, DOE.
ACTION: Notice of application.
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SUMMARY: The Office of Fossil Energy (FE) of the Department of Energy
(DOE) gives notice of receipt of an application (Application), filed on
September 18, 2015, by SeaOne Gulfport, LLC (SeaOne), requesting long-
term, multi-contract authorization to export up to a total of 1.0
billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) of natural gas contained in
Compressed Gas Liquid (CGL) by vessel \1\ to any country located in or
adjoining the Caribbean Basin and the Gulf of Mexico with which the
United States does not have a free trade agreement (FTA) requiring
national treatment for trade in natural gas, and with which trade is
not prohibited by U.S. law or policy (non-FTA countries).\2\ SeaOne
requests the authorization for a 30-year term to commence on the date
of first commercial export. The Application was filed under section 3
of the Natural Gas Act (NGA), 15 U.S.C. Section 717b, and Part 590 of
the Department of Energy's (``DOE'') regulations, 10 CFR part 590
(2011). SeaOne seeks to export the CGL from its proposed Gulfport CGL
production facility, currently being developed within the existing Port
of Gulfport, Mississippi. Additional details can be found in SeaOne's
Application, posted on the DOE/FE Web site at http://energy.gov/sites/prod/files/2016/04/f30/16-22-cgl.pdf and in SeaOne's response to
questions, posted on the DOE/FE Web site at http://energy.gov/sites/prod/files/2016/04/f30/Supplement.pdf. Protests, motions to intervene,
notices of intervention, and written comments in response to the
Application are invited.
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\1\ SeaOne does not specify the method of transport in its
Application. DOE/FE takes notice of the method indicated in SeaOne's
previous authorization. See SeaOne Pascagoula, LLC, Order Granting
Long-Term, Multi-Contract Authorization to Export by Vessel Natural
Gas Contained In or Mixed With Compressed Gas Liquid From the
Proposed Pascagoula Compressed Gas Liquid Export Facility to be
Located at the Port of Pascagoula, Mississippi to Free Trade
Agreement Nations in the Caribbean Basin and Gulf of Mexico, DOE/FE
Docket 14-83-CGL, Order No. 3555 (Dec. 2, 2014); see also SeaOne
Gulfport, LLC, Order Granting Request to Amend DOE/FE Order No. 3555
to Reflect Changes in Site Location and Corporate Name, DOE/FE
Docket 14-83-CGL, Order No. 3555-A (Sept. 25, 2015) (changing the
name of the entity and the site location from Pascagoula,
Mississippi to Gulfport, Mississippi).
\2\ SeaOne previously received authorization to export natural
gas contained in CGL to Free Trade Agreement Nations in DOE/FE Order
Nos. 3555 and 3555-A.
DATES: Protests, motions to intervene or notices of intervention, as
applicable, requests for additional procedures, and written comments
are to be filed using procedures detailed in the Public Comment
Procedures section no later than 4:30 p.m., Eastern time, June 17,
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2016.
ADDRESSES:
Electronic Filing by email: [email protected].
Regular Mail: U.S. Department of Energy (FE-34), Office of
Regulation and International Engagement, Office of Fossil Energy, P.O.
Box 44375, Washington, DC 20026-4375.
Hand Delivery or Private Delivery Services: (e.g., FedEx, UPS,
etc.): U.S. Department of Energy (FE-34), Office of Regulation and
International Engagement, Office of Fossil Energy, Forrestal Building,
Room 3E-042, 1000 Independence Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20585.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Larine Moore or Benjamin Nussdorf, U.S. Department of Energy (FE-34),
Office of Regulation and International Engagement, Office of Fossil
Energy, Forrestal Building, Room 3E-042, 1000 Independence Avenue SW.,
Washington, DC 20585, (202) 586-9478; (202) 586-7893.
Edward Myers, U.S. Department of Energy (GC-76), Office of the
Assistant General Counsel for Electricity and Fossil Energy, Forrestal
Building, 1000 Independence Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20585, (202)
586-9793.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
DOE/FE Evaluation
The Application will be reviewed pursuant to section 3(a) of the
NGA, 15 U.S.C. 717b(a), and DOE will consider any issues required by
law or policy. To the extent determined to be relevant, these issues
will include the domestic need for the natural gas proposed to be
exported, the adequacy of domestic natural gas supply, U.S. energy
security, and the cumulative impact of the requested authorization and
any other natural gas export application(s) previously approved on
domestic natural gas supply and demand fundamentals. DOE may also
consider other factors bearing on the public interest, including the
impact of the proposed exports on the U.S. economy (including GDP,
consumers, and industry), job creation, the U.S. balance of trade, and
international considerations; and whether the authorization is
consistent with DOE's policy of promoting competition in the
marketplace by allowing commercial parties to freely negotiate their
own trade arrangements. As part of this analysis, DOE will consider the
following two studies examining the cumulative impacts of exporting
domestically produced LNG insofar as they may be applicable to this
proceeding:
Effect of Increased Levels of Liquefied Natural Gas
Exports on U.S. Energy Markets, conducted by the U.S. Energy
Information Administration
[[Page 22586]]
upon DOE's request (2014 EIA LNG Export Study); \3\ and
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\3\ The 2014 EIA LNG Export Study, published on Oct. 29, 2014,
is available at: https://www.eia.gov/analysis/requests/fe/.
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The Macroeconomic Impact of Increasing U.S. LNG Exports,
conducted jointly by the Center for Energy Studies at Rice University's
Baker Institute for Public Policy and Oxford Economics, on behalf of
DOE (2015 LNG Export Study).\4\
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\4\ The 2015 LNG Export Study, dated Oct. 29, 2015, is available
at: http://energy.gov/sites/prod/files/2015/12/f27/20151113_macro_impact_of_lng_exports_0.pdf.
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Additionally, DOE will consider the following environmental document:
Addendum to Environmental Review Documents Concerning
Exports of Natural as From the United States, 79 FR 48132 (Aug. 15,
2014); \5\
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\5\ The Addendum and related documents are available at: http://energy.gov/fe/draft-addendum-environmental-review-documents-concerning-exports-natural-gas-united-states.
Parties that may oppose this Application should address the above-
listed issues and documents in their comments and/or protests, as well
as other issues deemed relevant to the Application.
The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), 42 U.S.C. 4321 et
seq., requires DOE to give appropriate consideration to the
environmental effects of its proposed decisions. No final decision will
be issued in this proceeding until DOE has met its environmental
responsibilities.
Public Comment Procedures
In response to this Notice, any person may file a protest,
comments, or a motion to intervene or notice of intervention, as
applicable. Due to the complexity of the issues raised by the
Applicant, interested parties will be provided 60 days from the date of
publication of this Notice in which to submit their comments, protests,
motions to intervene, or notices of intervention.
Any person wishing to become a party to the proceeding must file a
motion to intervene or notice of intervention. The filing of comments
or a protest with respect to the Application will not serve to make the
commenter or protestant a party to the proceeding, although protests
and comments received from persons who are not parties will be
considered in determining the appropriate action to be taken on the
Application. All protests, comments, motions to intervene, or notices
of intervention must meet the requirements specified by the regulations
in 10 CFR part 590.
Filings may be submitted using one of the following methods: (1)
Emailing the filing to [email protected], with FE Docket No. 16-22-CGL
in the title line; (2) mailing an original and three paper copies of
the filing to the Office of Regulation and International Engagement at
the address listed in ADDRESSES; or (3) hand delivering an original and
three paper copies of the filing to the Office of Regulation and
International Engagement at the address listed in ADDRESSES. All
filings must include a reference to FE Docket No. 16-22-CGL. PLEASE
NOTE: If submitting a filing via email, please include all related
documents and attachments (e.g., exhibits) in the original email
correspondence. Please do not include any active hyperlinks or password
protection in any of the documents or attachments related to the
filing. All electronic filings submitted to DOE must follow these
guidelines to ensure that all documents are filed in a timely manner.
Any hardcopy filing submitted greater in length than 50 pages must also
include, at the time of the filing, a digital copy on disk of the
entire submission.
A decisional record on the Application will be developed through
responses to this notice by parties, including the parties' written
comments and replies thereto. Additional procedures will be used as
necessary to achieve a complete understanding of the facts and issues.
If an additional procedure is scheduled, notice will be provided to all
parties. If no party requests additional procedures, a final Opinion
and Order may be issued based on the official record, including the
Application and responses filed by parties pursuant to this notice, in
accordance with 10 CFR 590.316.
The Application is available for inspection and copying in the
Office of Regulation and International Engagement docket room, Room 3E-
042, 1000 Independence Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20585. The docket
room is open between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday
through Friday, except Federal holidays.
The Application and any filed protests, motions to intervene or
notice of interventions, and comments will also be available
electronically by going to the following DOE/FE Web address: http://www.fe.doe.gov/programs/gasregulation/index.html.
Issued in Washington, DC, on April 12, 2016.
John A. Anderson,
Director, Office of Regulation and International Engagement, Office of
Oil and Natural Gas.
[FR Doc. 2016-08884 Filed 4-15-16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P