LNG Project Approved

By Candia Dames

candiadames@hotmail.com

Nassau, Bahamas

16th December

 

 

 

 

Minister of Trade and Industry Leslie Miller told the Bahama Journal yesterday that the government has approved in principle the proposal submitted by the AES Corporation to build a liquefied natural gas pipeline in The Bahamas.

 

The minister was asked to respond to reports in the Trinidadian press yesterday, which quoted him announcing the approval at the IBC/Energy Caribbean conference.

"We intend to diversify and expand the economic mix which will enable us to move ahead", he said. "The environment and tourism impacts can and will be addressed and the government intends to provide the clarity and stability necessary to attract these investments."

Minister Miller's announcement came on the same day that the Tractebel and El Paso energy companies and FPL Group Resources were announcing an alliance geared at sealing the government's approval to carry out a similar project in the northern Bahamas.

Some Bahamians, particularly those who are a part of environmental groups, are worried about a possible adverse environmental impact any LNG project could have.

AES officials have tried to placate those anxieties, assuring communities in The Bahamas and South Florida that any negative impact would be negligible.

Company officials continue to point to the significant benefits that such a project would bring to The Bahamas.

According to Project Director Aaron Samson, the AES project for The Bahamas would pay $7 million a year in business license fees.

The project is also expected to create about 450 jobs during the construction phase and 25 to 35 permanent employment opportunities.

"We're convinced that this is a very finance-able project and we won't have difficulties bringing it to fruition", Mr. Samson told the Bahama Journal in an earlier interview.

Company information says AES owns or has an interest in 160 plants in 23 countries.

Local environmentalists like those belonging to the group ReEarth continue to raise concerns regarding such projects.

ReEarth spokesperson Sam Duncombe has questioned whether companies like AES choose The Bahamas for their projects because of "our country's very loose environmental laws."

"I think a lot of it is that if they choose The Bahamas they would avoid the environmental laws that they would have to adhere to in the United States", she has told the Bahama Journal.

But it is a criticism Mr. Samson has repeatedly dismissed as he pointed to the unwavering commitment that AES has to the strictest international environmental standards.

The entire project would include a liquefied natural gas import terminal; a liquefied petroleum gas removal plant; a seawater desalination plant; an undersea pipeline to supply potable water from Ocean Cay to North Bimini; as well as Ocean Cay employee housing and associated facilities on South Bimini, and an undersea natural gas supply pipeline.

AES Corp. Clears Hurdle For LNG Pipeline

By Candia Dames

Nassau, Bahamas

candiadames@hotmail.com

23/01/2004

The AES Corporation has cleared another important hurdle in its bid to lay a liquefied natural gas pipeline between The Bahamas and southeastern Florida.

 

The U.S. Federal Regulatory Commission on Thursday gave the company final approval for its Ocean Express pipeline project, Reuters News Service reported.

 

Now AES has to secure the go-ahead from the Bahamas Government before it could begin the project.

 

But that could take some time.

 

Two months ago, Keod Smith, Ambassador to the Environment and Chairman of the Bahamas Environment Science and Technology Commission (BEST), urged the government to move "very slowly" before making a decision regarding the three proposals for LNG projects before it.

 

Mr. Smith said that the necessary legislation is not in place to guard against possible environmental impacts.

 

His comments came after the BEST Commission viewed the environmental impact assessment for the proposed AES project.

 

That assessment said that laying a liquefied natural gas pipeline from Ocean Cay, near Bimini, to Florida presents the greatest potential for impact to marine resources, as it will cause temporary disturbance to the ocean floor.

 

But the EIA also said that the $550 million project is not expected to impact critical habitats of any endangered or at risk species.

 

The report said the development of a LNG gas terminal and desalination plant on Ocean Cay would provide economic and social benefits to Bimini and the Bahamian government as well as providing a much needed additional supply of natural gas to South Florida and potable water and natural gas to Bimini.

 

The 54-mile pipeline would transport up to 842 million cubic feet of natural gas a day. The pipeline would connect with the Florida Gas Transmission Co. pipeline system in Broward County, Florida.

 

The Ocean Express pipeline would connect with, and receive natural gas transported by a 40-mile Bahamian-jurisdiction pipeline, which is owned by another AES affiliate, that extends to Ocean Cay.

 

Ocean Cay, a 90-acre man-made industrial island, would be the site of a liquefied natural gas storage and re-gasification facility that would receive LNG from foreign suppliers.

 

The AES pipeline would deliver natural gas to markets in Florida and over the interstate pipeline grid to other parts of the country. AES has said it plans to have the pipeline start delivering gas to customers by November 2005.

 

AES Project Director Aaron Samson has said that The Bahamas is the single best place in the world to bring LNG into southeast Florida and has continuously promised that his company is adhering to the strictest environmental standards.

 

Two other companies, El Paso and Tractebel North America Inc. also propose to establish liquefied natural gas pipelines between The Bahamas and Florida.

 

But Trade and Industry Minister Leslie Miller has said that it appears that El Paso is out of the race given that it has been reporting financial troubles.