[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 79 (Monday, April 25, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 24388-24390]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-08757]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Maritime Administration

[Docket No. MARAD-2022-0076]


Deepwater Port License Application: New Fortress Energy Louisiana 
FLNG LLC

AGENCY: Maritime Administration, Department of Transportation.

ACTION: Notice of application.

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[[Page 24389]]

SUMMARY: The Maritime Administration (MARAD) and the U.S. Coast Guard 
(USCG) announce they have received an application from New Fortress 
Energy Louisiana FLNG LLC (Applicant) for the licensing of a deepwater 
port and that the application for the New Fortress Energy Louisiana 
FLNG deepwater port contains information sufficient to commence 
processing. This notice summarizes the Applicant's plans and the 
procedures that will be considered during the application review 
process.

DATES: The Deepwater Port Act of 1974, as amended, (the Act) requires 
at least one public hearing on this application to be held in the 
designated Adjacent Coastal State(s) (ACS) not later than 240 days 
after publication of this notice and a decision on the application not 
later than 90 days after the final public hearing(s).

ADDRESSES: The public docket for the New Fortress Energy Louisiana FLNG 
deepwater port license application is maintained by the U.S. Department 
of Transportation, Docket Management Facility, West Building, Ground 
Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590.
    The license application is available for viewing at the 
Regulations.gov website: https://www.regulations.gov under docket 
number MARAD-2022-0076.
    We encourage you to submit comments electronically through the 
Federal eRulemaking Portal at https://www.regulations.gov. 
Alternatively, comments may be mailed to the public docket at the 
address listed above or faxed to 202-493-2251. Comments that are sent 
to the docket should include the docket number, which is MARAD-2022-
0076.
    If you submit your comments electronically, it is not necessary to 
also submit a hard copy. Additionally, if you go to the online docket 
and sign up for email alerts, you will be notified when comments are 
posted. Anonymous comments will be accepted. All comments received will 
be posted without change to https://www.regulations.gov and will 
include any personal information you have provided. The Federal Docket 
Management Facility's telephone number is 202-366-9317 or 202-366-9826, 
the fax number is 202-493-2251.
    If you cannot submit material using https://www.regulations.gov, 
please contact either Mr. Brian Barton, MARAD, or Ms. Galia Kaplan, as 
listed in the following FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of this 
document.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Brian Barton, Maritime 
Administration, telephone 202-366-0302, email: [email protected], or 
Ms. Galia Kaplan, U.S. Coast Guard, telephone: 202-372-1567, email: 
[email protected]. For questions regarding viewing the Docket, call 
Docket Operations, telephone: 202-366-9826.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Receipt of Application

    On March 31, 2022, MARAD and USCG received an application from the 
Applicant for all Federal authorizations required for a license to own, 
construct, and operate a deepwater port for the export of liquified 
natural gas (LNG) as authorized by the Act, and implemented under 33 
Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Parts 148, 149, and 150. After a 
coordinated completeness review by MARAD, USCG, and other cooperating 
Federal agencies, the application is deemed complete and contains 
information sufficient to initiate processing.

Background

    The Act defines a deepwater port as any fixed or floating manmade 
structure other than a vessel, or any group of such structures, that 
are located beyond State seaward boundaries and used or intended for 
use as a port or terminal for the transportation, storage, and further 
handling of oil or natural gas for transportation to, or from, any 
State. A deepwater port includes all components and equipment, 
including pipelines, pumping or compressor stations, service platforms, 
buoys, mooring lines, and similar facilities that are proposed as part 
of a deepwater port to the extent they are located seaward of the high-
water mark.
    The Secretary of Transportation delegated to the Maritime 
Administrator authorities related to licensing deepwater ports (49 CFR 
1.93(h)). Statutory and regulatory requirements for processing 
applications and licensing appear in 33 U.S.C. 1501 et seq. and 33 CFR 
part 148. Under delegations from and agreements between the Secretary 
of Transportation and the Secretary of Homeland Security, applications 
are jointly processed by MARAD and USCG. Each application is considered 
on its merits.
    In accordance with 33 U.S.C. 1504(f) for all applications, MARAD 
and the USCG, working in cooperation with other involved Federal 
agencies and departments, shall comply with the requirements of the 
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et 
seq.). The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the U.S. Army 
Corps of Engineers (USACE), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 
Administration (NOAA), the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), 
the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE), and the 
Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), among 
others, participate in the processing of deepwater port applications 
and assist in the NEPA process as described in 40 CFR 1501.6. Each 
agency may participate in scoping and/or other public meeting(s) and 
may incorporate the MARAD/USCG environmental impact review for purposes 
of their jurisdictional permitting processes, to the extent applicable. 
Comments related to this deepwater port application addressed to the 
EPA, USACE, or other federal agencies should note the federal docket 
number, MARAD-2022-0076. Each comment will be incorporated into the 
Department of Transportation (DOT) docket and considered as the 
environmental impact analysis is developed to ensure consistency with 
the NEPA process. All connected actions, permits, approvals, and 
authorizations will be considered during the processing of the New 
Fortress Energy Louisiana FLNG deepwater port license application.
    MARAD, in issuing this Notice of Application pursuant to 33 U.S.C. 
1504(c), must designate as an ACS any coastal state which (A) would be 
directly connected by pipeline to a deepwater port as proposed in an 
application, or (B) would be located within 15 nautical miles of any 
such proposed deepwater port (see 33 U.S.C. 1508(a)(1)). Pursuant to 
the criteria provided in the Act, Louisiana is the designated ACS for 
this application. Other states may request from the Maritime 
Administrator designation as an ACS in accordance with 33 U.S.C. 
1508(a)(2).
    The Act directs that at least one public hearing take place in each 
ACS, in this case, Louisiana. Additional public meetings may be 
conducted to solicit comments for the environmental analysis to include 
public scoping meetings, or meetings to discuss the Draft and Final 
Environmental Impact Statement documents prepared in accordance with 
NEPA.
    MARAD, in coordination with the USCG, will publish additional 
Federal Register notices with information regarding these public 
meeting(s) and hearing(s) and other procedural milestones, including 
the NEPA environmental impact review. The Maritime Administrator's 
decision, and other key documents, will be filed in the

[[Page 24390]]

public docket for the application at docket number MARAD-2022-0076.
    The Act imposes a strict timeline for processing an application. 
When MARAD and USCG determine that an application is complete (i.e., 
contains information sufficient to commence processing), the Act 
directs that all public hearings on the application be concluded within 
240 days from the date the Notice of Application is published.
    Within 45 days after the final hearing, the Governor of the ACS, in 
this case, the Governor of Louisiana, may notify MARAD of their 
approval, approval with conditions, or disapproval of the application. 
If such approval, approval with conditions, or disapproval is not 
provided to the Maritime Administrator by that time, approval shall be 
conclusively presumed. MARAD may not issue a license without the 
explicit or presumptive approval of the Governor of the ACS. During 
this 45-day period, the Governor may also notify MARAD of 
inconsistencies between the application and State programs relating to 
environmental protection, land and water use, and coastal zone 
management. In this case, MARAD may condition the license to make it 
consistent with such state programs (33 U.S.C. 1508(b)(1)). MARAD will 
not consider written approvals or disapprovals of the application from 
the Governor of the ACS until commencement of the 45-day period after 
the final public hearing for the Final Environmental Impact Statement 
is completed. The Maritime Administrator must render a decision on the 
application within 90 days after the final hearing.
    Should a favorable record of decision be rendered and a license be 
issued, MARAD may include specific conditions related to design, 
construction, operations, environmental permitting, monitoring and 
mitigations, and financial responsibilities. If a license is issued, 
USCG, in coordination with other agencies as appropriate, would review 
and approve the deepwater port's engineering, design, and construction; 
operations/security procedures; waterways management and regulated 
navigation areas; maritime safety and security requirements; risk 
assessment; and compliance with domestic and international laws and 
regulations for vessels that may call on the port. The deepwater port 
would be designed, constructed, and operated in accordance with 
applicable codes and standards.
    In addition, the installation of pipelines and other structures may 
require permits under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act and Section 10 
of the Rivers and Harbors Act, which are administered by the USACE.
    Permits from the EPA may also be required pursuant to the 
provisions of the Clean Air Act, as amended, and the Clean Water Act, 
as amended.

Summary of the Application

    The application proposes the ownership, construction, operation, 
and eventual decommissioning of the New Fortress Energy (``NFE'') 
Louisiana FLNG deepwater port (``DWP'') terminal approximately 16 
nautical miles off the southeast coast of Grand Isle, Louisiana. The 
project is to source domestic natural gas from multiple supply hubs in 
the Southeast Louisiana local market, liquify, and export as liquefied 
natural gas (LNG) up to 2.8 million metric tonnes per annum (MTPA), 
from a deepwater port located in federal waters off Louisiana.
    The project will involve the installation of two nominal 1.4 MTPA 
liquefaction systems (FLNG1 and FLNG2) installed in the West Delta 
Outer Continental Shelf Lease Block 38 (``WD-38'') in approximately 30 
meters (98 feet) of water. Each system will contain three platforms 
consisting of natural gas processing, natural gas liquefaction, and 
utilities and accommodations. FLNG1 will incorporate self-elevating 
platforms (aka jack-up platforms or rigs), and FLNG2, which will be 
located adjacent to FLNG1, will utilize fixed platform structures. An 
additional self-elevating platform will house feed gas compressors. 
Other than temporary construction staging areas, there are no onshore 
facilities associated with the Project. Staging for construction, if 
needed, will utilize existing staging, laydown and warehouse space near 
Port Fourchon, Port Sulphur, or Venice.
    The feed gas supply to the project will be transported to the WD-38 
site via the existing Kinetica Energy Express, LLC (``Kinetica'') 
offshore natural gas pipeline system and two newly constructed, 24-inch 
pipeline laterals connecting the Kinetica pipeline system to the 
Project. The Kinetica pipeline has been in continuous natural gas 
service since it was placed in service. The pipeline pressure is 
currently operating at 750 pounds per square inch (``psi'') with an 
onshore Maximum Allowable Operating Pressure (``MAOP'') of 1,000 psi 
and an offshore MAOP of 1,250 psi.
    Both FLNG1 and FLNG2 will be connected to a single Floating LNG 
Storage Unit (``FSU'') via a flexible, partially submerged, 220-meter 
cryogenic hose transfer system. The FSU will be positioned 
approximately 107 meters (350 feet) from the FLNGs. To export the LNG, 
the FSU will receive one (1) commercially traded LNG carrier (LNGC) at 
a time, which will have a nominal cargo capacity of approximately 
125,000 m3 to 160,000 m3. The LNGCs will berth along the starboard side 
of the FSU and receive the LNG cargo through a ship-to-ship transfer 
cargo transfer system. The LNGC will approach the DWP and depart from 
the DWP using an extension to the established safety fairway, which 
serves maritime traffic calling at the Louisiana Offshore Oil Port. 
Approximately 40 LNGCs will call on the Project per year.
    For more information please contact either Mr. Brian Barton, MARAD, 
or Ms. Galia Kaplan, as listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT 
section of this document.

Privacy Act

    The electronic form of all comments received into the Federal 
Docket Management System can be searched by the name of the individual 
submitting the comment (or signing the comment, if submitted on behalf 
of an association, business, labor union, etc.). The DOT Privacy Act 
Statement can be viewed in the Federal Register published on April 11, 
2000 (Volume 65, Number 70, pages 19477-78) or by visiting 
www.regulations.gov.

(Authority: 33 U.S.C. 1501, et seq.; 49 CFR 1.93(h))

    By Order of the Acting Maritime Administrator.
T. Mitchell Hudson, Jr.,
Secretary, Maritime Administration.
[FR Doc. 2022-08757 Filed 4-22-22; 8:45 am]
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