Port Dolphin Energy and the Manatee Port Authority agreed to a $30 million contract where Port Dolphin will lease approximately 35 acres of Port Manatee's property and obtain a right of way for a pipeline associated with the planned LNG deepwater port. Under the terms of the agreement, as reported by the Bradenton Herald, Port Dolphin will pay the port authority $425,000 as a down payment within five days of concluding the contract, $375,000 more by September 30, 2010, and another $1.2 million when final permits are issued for the project. If Port Dolphin exercises its option to construct the LNG deepwater port and pipeline, the port authority will receive $30 million over the life of the contract.

Canadian Superior Energy announced this morning that it intends to file federal and state applications for its Liberty LNG deepwater port proposed for offshore New Jersey in the third quarter of 2010.

The Maritime Administration (MARAD) announced this morning in the Federal Register that the Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement prepared for the TORP Bienville LNG deepwater port project is now available in the Regulations.gov system under Docket No. USCG-2006-24644. MARAD also announced that it has scheduled a public meeting  to accept comments on the project in Mobile, Ala., on December 9, 2009.

On July 13, 2009, MARAD and the U.S Coast Guard published notice in the Federal Register of the availability of the Final Environmental Impact Statement  (FEIS) for the Port Dolphin LNG Deepwater Port license application. The project proposes a deepwater port in the St. Petersburg block of the Outer Continental Shelf. The port would consist of a permanently moored unloading buoy system designed to moor a specialized type of LNG vessel called Shuttle and Regasification Vessels, which have capacities of 145,000 and 217,000 cubic meters. The unloading buoys would connect to a pipeline onshore in Port Manatee, Florida, which would connect with the Gulfstream Natural Gas System and Tampa Electric Company. The project will require approval from FERC for the onshore pipelines, potential permits from the Army Corps of Engineers for the pipeline and structures, and permits from the EPA under the Clean Air Act and the Clean Water Act.
 
Public hearing will take place in Palmetto, Florida on July 28, 2009. Comments on the FEIS or the application are due by August 23, 2009.  As explained in the notice, the FEIS should be accessible soon  in Docket No. USCG-2006-28532 on www.regulations.gov.

The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) has issued an incidental harassment of marine mammals authorization to Neptune LNG, LLC for one year until June 30, 2010. The announcement is available in the Federal Register.

In a major development for offshore renewable energy on the OCS, FERC Acting Chairman Jon Wellinghoff and Interior Secretary Ken Salazar today announced an agreement between their agencies to facilitate the permitting and siting of renewable energy projects on the OCS.  Salazar stated that the agreement "will help sweep aside red tape so that our country can capture the great power of wave, tidal, wind and solar power off our coasts," while Wellinghoff confirmed that the agreement "will help get renewable energy projects off the drawing board and onto the [OCS]."  While this agreement appears to settle the jurisdictional dispute, the details have yet to be worked out. 

The brief joint statement reaffirms Interior's and MMS's broad "responsibility for the permitting and development of renewable energy resources on the [OCS] .... [i]n particular, [its] permitting and development authority over wind power projects that use offshore resources beyond state waters."  It also expressly states that "FERC will have the primary responsibility to manage the licensing of such projects in offshore waters pursuant to the Federal Power Act, using procedures developed for hydropower licenses, and with the active involvement of relevant federal land and resource agencies, including the Department of the Interior."  Wellinghoff and Salazar state that they have requested their agencies' staffs prepare a short memorandum of understanding setting forth the principles outlined in the joint statement and "which describes the process by which permits and licenses related to renewable energy resources in offshore waters will be developed."

In addition, testifying this morning before the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources and commenting on the new agreement with FERC, Salazar indicated that he expects the MMS will be able to move forward in the next couple months to finalize the rules for offshore wind power development on the OCS. 

This appears to be a win-win for both agencies.  MMS maintains authority over offshore wind power projects and likely will have a cooperating agency role in hydrokinetic projects.  FERC will have permitting and licensing authority over offshore hydrokinetic projects.  Although there are no details at this point, this appears to resemble the regulatory structure applicable to LNG deepwater ports, in which the U.S. Maritime Administration has lead agency authority over the siting and licensing of the projects, and in which MMS is a cooperating agency granting the appropriate leases and rights-of-way. 

While this agreement undoubtedly will provide some regulatory certainty for many project developers going forward, how the two agencies actually flesh out their respective authority remains uncertain.  In particular, in offshore locations where there are competing offshore wind and hydrokinetic proposals with overlapping land claims, there is no indication at this point how such claims will be resolved.

Yesterday Calypso LNG, LLC notified the U.S. Maritime Administration (MARAD) that it will suspend work on its previously filed application to construct an LNG deepwater port planned for offshore Florida. Calypso LNG's announcement follows comments by Florida Gov. Charlie Crist (R) that he would oppose the project. MARAD's press release (courtesy of LNGLawBlog) offers additional details.

The House Natural Resources Committee today convened the second in a series of hearings addressing the nation's policy on offshore drilling.  In his opening statement, Committee Chairman, Nick Rahall (D-WV), noted that he is "not opposed to drilling," but is "aware of the risks" associated with the development of the OCS.  This sentiment was echoed by several of the Committee's members who, while not in favor of reimposing the longstanding congressional drilling moratoria, understand that opening the offshore to greater production will trigger environmental concerns, including the addition of more greenhouse gases to the atmosphere.  On this point, several members asserted that it is not yet clear that such activities have significantly contributed to global warming.  Not surprisingly, there was generally a clear divide between Committee Democrats and Republicans on these issues, although both sides appeared interested in developing a national energy policy.    
 
The first panel included Reps. Sam Farr (D) and Dana Rohrabacher (R), both from California.  Rep. Farr was in favor of reinstating the moratoria, noting that he supports a temporary ban until a more comprehensive approach can be established.  Rep. Farr also advocated for "marine spatial planning," a process that allows the government to "assess and then allocate areas of the OCS" for development in a manner that preserves the oceans and benefits the economy.  He contrasted this method with onshore development, where certain regions hosting critical habitats are restricted from development.  In contrast, Rep. Rohrabacher strongly advocated for OCS drilling while noting that he is an avid surfer and scuba diver.  He cited environmental groups as a key obstacle to expanded exploration and production.  He added that the lack of OCS production requires the United States to import oil and gas by tanker.  Noting that tanker spills cause greater damage than spills from OCS production, he said opponents "ironically make oil spills more likely" by blocking the development of such production.  Rep. Rohrabacher also suggested, somewhat facetiously, that providing pleasant "facades" on offshore platforms (e.g., painting trees on them) may help to win the support of environmental opponents. 
 
After a rousing first session, the atmosphere surrounding the second panel was less colorful.  The lighting rod on the panel, at least for Republicans, was Secretary Mike Chrisman of the California Natural Resources Agency.  Secretary Chrisman was frequently questioned about his state's staunch opposition to offshore drilling.  Committee Ranking Member Doc Hastings (R-WA) also asked why California appears to support the importation of liquefied natural gas (LNG) over offshore production, implying that the nation would be better served by producing natural gas domestically than importing from "Saudi Arabia, Venezuela and Brazil."  Secretary Chrisman noted that the state is evaluating importing LNG from Australia and that LNG is part of a broader energy policy, which includes a heavy renewable energy component.  Virginia State Senator Frank Wagner (R), a longtime supporter of drilling offshore Virginia, noted that he disagrees with Governor's Kaine's support for Interior Secretary Salazar's recent decision to extend the comment period on the 5-year OCS plan by 180 days.   
 
Tomorrow the Committee will host the third hearing in the series, focusing on industrial perspectives.  Based on past hearings, this one promises to be the most contentious. 

Governor Charlie Crist (R-FL) pledged yesterday to oppose the proposed Calypso LNG deepwater port planned 10 miles off the coast of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., noting that he believes the project is "already in bed. It's gone." Read more in the Miami Herald.

Woodside Natural Gas announced yesterday that it has suspended its OceanWay LNG deepwater port project proposed for offshore Southern California. A company spokesperson told the Los Angeles Times that Woodside plans to revive the project when economic conditions change.