Federal regulators approved an expansion of Williams Partners’ Transco natural gas pipeline, allowing the Atlantic Sunrise project in Pennsylvania to move forward.
Issuing its decision on September 15, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approved a $3 billion 197-mile pipeline expansion, the Atlantic Sunrise pipeline, which will transport natural gas from shale gas fields northeastern Pennsylvania to mid-Atlantic and southeastern states.
The Transco system, comprised of 10,200 miles of pipeline, is already the largest natural gas pipeline in the U.S.
Williams Partners broke ground on the pipeline expansion on September 18.
The Transco expansion accompanies increasing natural gas production in Pennsylvania. The Marcellus Shale, a major source of natural gas in the United States, stretches across Pennsylvania and several neighboring states. An annual state report shows Pennsylvania’s natural gas output hit a record in 2016, growing 11 percent compared to 2015.
H. Sterling Burnett, Ph.D. ([email protected]) is the managing editor of Environment & Climate News.
