Plan to boost pipeline cheered Compression units to help meet Down East towns’ demand for gas

BAILEYVILLE – A town official says a consortium’s plan to crank up another compression unit along its natural gas pipeline is a positive sign for the town.

Maritimes & Northeast Pipeline, owned by a group of energy companies, announced earlier this week that it has filed an application with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to operate additional compression units at its compressor stations in Baileyville and Richmond.

Compression stations boost pressure in a line. Maritimes and its Canadian affiliate transport natural gas from near Sable Island, off the coast of Nova Scotia, through New Brunswick to energy markets in Atlantic Canada and the Northeastern United States.

“There has been a higher than expected demand for natural gas, and hopefully the demand will lead to perhaps another line,” said Jack Clukey, Baileyville town manager. If Maritimes adds a second line, Clukey said, it would benefit Baileyville and all the communities in Washington County that the pipeline touches.

Clukey said the value of the Baileyville facilities is around $23 million. They generate about $375,000 in property-tax revenue. Maritimes hopes to connect a spare compressor unit within its existing compressor station building and install and operate auxiliary facilities. The project is expected to have minimal impact on existing facilities and the environment, company officials said. There is no immediate financial benefit to the town, Clukey said.

Maritimes hopes to have additional compression available for existing shippers by mid-July to meet the energy demands of the peak summer season.

“Upon FERC approval of our application, we will be ready to move forward to quickly respond to our customers’ energy needs this summer,” said Bill Penney, senior vice president of the Maritimes unit that manages the pipeline.

“In the Northeast, demand for natural gas is increasing due to both the new efficient gas-fired power plants recently completed and the continued growth in residential consumption,” Maritimes said in a news release. “Additional compression on the Maritimes system will help meet this demand by providing additional supplies of natural gas to the Northeast.”

The $3 billion pipeline, which stretches from Nova Scotia to Boston, was built two years ago,

The upgrade will be a boost for those users. “We understand the need to bring more natural gas to the Northeast, and we are responding to the need,” said Tom O’Connor, president of M&N Management Co., the pipeline’s managing unit. “Maritimes has been operating at [nearly] full capacity. With additional compression in Maine, we will be able to transport larger volumes of natural gas to help accommodate the growing market demand throughout the region.”

In its FERC application, Maritimes seeks to place into service on a full-time basis a standby compression unit already installed at the Richmond compressor station.

Maritimes is owned by affiliates of Duke Energy, Westcoast Energy Inc., ExxonMobil, and Emera Inc.