LNG firm, residents discuss facility Quoddy Bay pitches Robbinston plan

CALAIS – While Robbinston’s residents may agree with the politics and economics of natural gas as a fuel for the country’s future, they took on a more immediate question on Thursday evening, one far more local: Is liquified natural gas the right thing for Washington County, right now?

The project manager for an Oklahoma company attempting to get a foothold in Robbinston for an LNG storage facility tried to convince them it is.

Brian Smith, representing Quoddy Bay LLC of Oklahoma City, took questions from a roomful of 40 people at Washington County Community College.

It was the first time that Robbinston residents had been invited to meet with the company, which is competing against a rival LNG developer. Downeast LNG of Washington, D.C., has also selected Robbinston as a site for an LNG import facility.

Both companies are seeking the approval of Robbinston’s 525 residents – plus federal permitting – that would allow them to put their facilities either near Mill Cove (Quoddy Bay) or on it (Downeast).

“Why Robbinston?” was the recurring query that Smith got asked.

Three reasons, he answered.

Foremost, the storage facility’s companion import facility would be eight miles away, at Pleasant Point, connected by an underwater pipeline. Quoddy Bay struck a deal with the Passamaquoddy Tribe to pursue construction of an LNG facility on tribal land a year ago, and remains committed to that relationship.

Second, the storage facility would be located one mile inland, far from the marine sanctuaries of Passamaquoddy Bay.

Third, Smith said, “The town of St. Andrews [New Brunswick, one mile across the bay from Robbinston] made it very clear that they didn’t want a view of an LNG pier and ships.

“St. Andrews is seen as a place of pride for Canada,” Smith said. “It’s a vacation destination. It’s important that we pay attention to the visual impact of what we’re doing.”

Smith said he will be meeting next week with the mayor and council of St. Andrews, in advance of a public meeting in St. Andrews on Monday, Aug. 22.

Even sooner, Smith will oversee a meeting of Quoddy Bay’s advisory committee, drawn from Robbinston residents who have an interest in the proposed storage facility.

While he was not prepared to identify members of the committee, his company’s public relations spokeswoman noted that there are “approximately 15” on the committee.

The advisory group will hold its first meeting on Wednesday, Aug. 17. That will be closed to all who are not members of the panel.

“They will discuss in their first meeting if they want their meetings to be open to the public,” Smith told the audience. “We want them to speak their minds freely, and they might not want to if the press is there.”

One group that was not present at Thursday’s meeting was Save Passamaquoddy Bay, which opposes LNG terminals and associated facilities in the Passamaquoddy Bay area.

A Robbinston subgroup of Save Passamaquoddy Bay surfaced in the wake of the descent on the town by both LNG developers last month. Coordinators of the Robbinston effort are Katherine and Richard Berry, Jim and Jean Nicholas, Jean Elsemore and Carol Hollingdale.

Despite overtures from both LNG developers, Save Passamaquoddy Bay leaders have no interest in meeting with either project’s representatives.

“No LNG terminals, no LNG ships, no LNG tanks, and no LNG pipelines in Passamaquoddy Bay,” coordinator Linda Godfrey said last month in making the announcement about Save Passamaquoddy Bay-Robbinston.

“That has been our position from the outset, and it’s our position now,” Godfrey said. “We have no reason to meet with developers whose goals are to come here and threaten our lives and livelihoods, our culture, and our environment.”

The Quoddy Bay principals have been at work in the area for more than a year now. But they haven’t learned a basic lesson that other Washington County business leaders tend to follow.

Asked if the 10 pages of large-print, stapled material that Smith passed out on Thursday to highlight the company’s work here so far was printed and prepared by a Washington County business, Smith said it was not.

“Some of it came from the tribal office at Pleasant Point, and the rest was done in Portland,” Smith said with a smile. “All Maine.”