[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 21 (Wednesday, January 31, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 4473-4475]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-01895]


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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

[FE Docket No. 17-167-LNG]


Galveston Bay LNG, LLC; Application for Long-Term, Multi-Contract 
Authorization To Export Liquefied Natural Gas to Non-Free Trade 
Agreement Nations

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 
December 22, 2017, by Galveston Bay LNG, LLC (Galveston Bay LNG), 
requesting long-term, multi-contract authorization to export 
domestically produced liquefied natural gas (LNG) in a volume 
equivalent to 785.7 billion cubic feet (Bcf) per year of natural gas. 
Galveston Bay LNG seeks authorization to export this LNG from its 
proposed natural gas liquefaction facility to be located in Texas City, 
Texas (Galveston Bay LNG Project).
    Galveston Bay LNG seeks authorization to export this LNG to 
countries with which trade is not prohibited by U.S. law or policy, 
including both countries with which the United States has entered into 
a free trade agreement (FTA) requiring national treatment for trade in 
natural gas (FTA countries) and all other countries (non-FTA 
countries). Galveston Bay LNG requests the non-FTA authorization for a 
term of 20 years, to begin on the date of first export following the 
commencement of operations or seven years from the date of a final 
order granting export authorization, whichever is first. In addition, 
Galveston Bay LNG is requesting that it be afforded a three-year make-
up period for the purpose of exporting any volume it is unable to 
export during the original export period, consistent with DOE/FE 
precedent. Galveston Bay LNG further requests this authorization on its 
own behalf and as agent for other entities who hold title to

[[Page 4474]]

the natural gas at the time of export. Galveston Bay LNG filed the 
Application under section 3 of the Natural Gas Act (NGA). Additional 
details can be found in Galveston Bay LNG's Application, posted on the 
DOE/FE website at https://energy.gov/fe/downloads/galveston-bay-lng-llc-fe-dkt-no-17-167-lng.
    Protests, motions to intervene, notices of intervention, and 
written comments are invited.

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, April 2, 
2018.

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: 
    Beverly Howard or Larine Moore, 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) 586-9387; (202) 586-9478.
    Cassandra S. Bernstein, U.S. Department of Energy, Office of the 
Assistant General Counsel for Electricity and Fossil Energy, Forrestal 
Building, Room 6D-033, 1000 Independence Ave. SW, Washington, DC 20585, 
(202) 586-9793.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

DOE/FE Evaluation

    In the Application, Galveston Bay LNG requests authorization to 
export LNG from the proposed Galveston Bay LNG Project to both FTA 
countries and non-FTA countries. This Notice applies only to the 
portion of the Application requesting authority to export LNG to non-
FTA countries pursuant to section 3(a) of the NGA, 15 U.S.C. 717b(a). 
DOE separately will review the portion of the Application requesting 
authority to export LNG to FTA countries pursuant to section 3(c) of 
the NGA, 15 U.S.C. 717b(c).
    In reviewing Galveston Bay LNG's request for a non-FTA export 
authorization, DOE will consider any issues required by law or policy. 
DOE will consider domestic need for the natural gas, as well as any 
other issues determined to be appropriate, including whether the 
arrangement 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:
     Effect of Increased Levels of Liquefied Natural Gas on 
U.S. Energy Markets, conducted by the U.S. Energy Information 
Administration upon DOE's request (2014 EIA LNG Export Study); \1\ and
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    \1\ 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).\2\
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    \2\ 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 
documents:
     Addendum to Environmental Review Documents Concerning 
Exports of Natural Gas From the United States, 79 FR 48132 (Aug. 15, 
2014); \3\ and
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    \3\ The Addendum and related documents are available at: https://energy.gov/fe/addendum-environmental-review-documents-concerning-exports-natural-gas-united-states.
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     Life Cycle Greenhouse Gas Perspective on Exporting 
Liquefied Natural Gas from the United States, 79 FR 32260 (June 4, 
2014).\4\
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    \4\ The Life Cycle Greenhouse Gas Report is available at: http://energy.gov/fe/life-cycle-greenhouse-gas-perspective-exporting-liquefied-natural-gas-united-states.
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    Parties that may oppose this Application should address these 
issues and documents in their comments and/or protests, as well as 
other issues deemed relevant to the non-FTA portion of 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, regarding the non-FTA export portion of the Application. 
Interested persons will be provided 60 days from the date of 
publication of this Notice in which to submit comments, protests, 
motions to intervene, 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. 17-167-LNG 
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. 17-167-LNG. 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

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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 January 26, 2018.
Robert J. Smith,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Oil and Natural Gas (Acting).
[FR Doc. 2018-01895 Filed 1-30-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6450-01-P