Quoddy Bay LNG files data with FERC

In an effort to move its proposed liquefied natural gas facility forward, Quoddy Bay LNG submitted a filing Thursday to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission in response to a data request from FERC and the U.S. Coast Guard.

Quoddy Bay is an Oklahoma-based developer planning to construct an LNG import and storage facility in Perry and at Pleasant Point. Quoddy Bay is awaiting a response to permit applications it has filed with FERC and the state of Maine.

In a June letter to FERC, Coast Guard Capt. Stephen Garrity, who has since retired, said the Coast Guard would need “certain information to fully assess the maritime safety, security and environmental impact in order to complete a Water Suitability Report.”

That report is critical in the permitting effort for an LNG developer.

Among the questions raised by the Coast Guard and FERC are how LNG facility operations will be conducted given the Canadian government’s opposition to LNG tankers transiting Head Harbor Passage to reach U.S. ports.

“We recognize the unique situation we are in, and that’s why we’ve spent months finding the most practicable solution,” Quoddy Bay project manager Brian Smith said in a prepared statement issued Thursday. “The report we submitted should cover everything FERC and the Coast Guard are looking for, and most importantly, it demonstrates that operations can legally and safely proceed with or without Canadian participation in this process.”

Absent from the official data request from FERC was the request from the original USCG letter that indicated the company should seek out and obtain a Canadian report that serves as the basis for the Canadian government’s position.

“We believe that FERC recognizes Quoddy Bay LNG as a private company,” Smith said. “We cannot negotiate with a foreign nation, and such a responsibility should be left in the hands of the State Department and the White House.”

Canada first stated more than a year ago that it would produce a report to substantiate its position. No such report has been released.

Smith said his first hope is that Canada will participate in the process, as that would lead to the best results for all parties.

“However, Canada’s continued lack of participation will not stop this project from moving forward,” he said.

Quoddy Bay said that the data it submitted Thursday contains extensive safety and security protocols and will remain undisclosed for security reasons.

However, once the Coast Guard releases a Waterway Suitability Report, many of the recommendations of how operations will be conducted in the waterway will be revealed, Quoddy Bay said.