US-Bahamas gas line safe for environment says Federal agency

Tuesday, January 27, 2004

WASHINGTON, USA: The proposed $144 million Calypso natural gas pipeline that would be operated by Suez's Tractebel unit would not hurt the environment, staff at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission said.

According to Reuters, the 90-mile-long Calypso pipeline would ship about 832 million cubic feet of natural gas per day to Broward County, Florida from a liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal in Freeport, Bahamas.

The gas carried by the pipeline would be marketed as fuel to run the electric generating plants expected to be built in Florida in coming years.

The 42-mile portion of the pipeline extending from the area midway between the south Florida coastline and the Bahamas will be under the jurisdiction of the U.S.-based FERC.

In a notice late on Friday, FERC staff said approving the pipeline "would have limited adverse environmental impact."

FERC gave preliminary approval to the project last April. The agency's four commissioners must still weigh the environmental impact of the pipeline, relying heavily on the staff's recommendation, when deciding whether to give final approval to the project.

Tractebel wants to begin construction of the pipeline in 2005 and have it transport gas in 2007.

LNG is natural gas that is supercooled and turned into a compressed liquid form for easier shipment by tanker. The LNG is converted back into gas at a receiving terminal so it can be transported by pipeline.  

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