The PennEast pipeline is back in the news thanks to judicial movement.
Designed to run from Luzrene County, Pennsylvania to Mercer County, New Jersey the 120-mile pipeline project remains halted after New Jersey officials questioned aspects of eminent domain uses for the pipeline. Now, the solicitor general has submitted a brief to the Supreme Court of the United States asking for the high court to weigh in. The solicitor general has questioned whether the halt interfere with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s (FERC) “ability to administer the Nation’s natural gas supply.”
Reports suggest the case, if taken up by the Supreme Court, could have a ruling as early as June.
As other projects like the Mariner East pipeline system, Shell Cracker plant, and Marcus Hook Industrial Complex have shown, energy infrastructure projects add horsepower to the economic by creating jobs, generating new tax revenues, and rewarding energy customer in the Commonwealth and, as PennEast demonstrates, along the East Coast.
It is encouraging to see the solicitor general emphasize the need for FERC to be free to do its job, and bat down obstructionist efforts like those in New Jersey keeping an important project coming to fruition.