Natural gas firm to pursue offshore Mass. berth

The company hoping to build a liquefied natural gas import terminal in Fall River, Mass., said Thursday it is focusing on an alternate plan for an offshore berth in Mount Hope Bay to receive tanker deliveries.

The original proposal from Weaver's Cove Energy depended on tankers traveling up the Taunton River to Fall River.

Critics, including Fall River officials and members of the state's congressional delegation, worked to block the original proposal, saying it poses unacceptable risks to the heavily populated area. That plan also was opposed by officials in nearby Rhode Island.

The Weaver's Cove announcement came one day after the House voted to extend federal "wild and scenic" environmental protection to the Taunton River, dealing a setback to the company's plan for an LNG terminal on an urbanized stretch of riverbank in Fall River. The Massachusetts congressional delegation was behind the bill.

Under the new plan, tankers would unload LNG offshore into a four-mile underwater pipeline to Fall River. Company officials said the proposed offshore berth would be located about one mile from the nearest shoreline and two miles south of the Braga Bridge.

The company said the new plan was aimed at easing community safety and environmental concerns.

"This new proposal would not require LNG ship traffic within the confines of the Taunton River and would address concerns previously expressed by the community and the U.S. Coast Guard," Weaver's Cove officials said in a statement. "It would also greatly decrease dredging within the Taunton River."

Rep. James McGovern, D-Mass., said he has concerns about safety risks posed by the latest proposal. He said it was misleading for Weaver's Cove to characterize it as an "offshore" proposal.

"Mount Hope Bay is not the Gulf of Mexico," McGovern said in a statement. "It's a crowded waterway, and LNG tankers would continue to pose a significant hazard to commercial and recreational boat traffic. But the most important point is this they still want the storage tankers on land in Fall River, a stone's throw away from residential neighborhoods. That has always been the most significant safety concern about this project, and today's new announcement doesn't change that one bit."

The alternate plan for an offshore berth was first floated in March by company officials who said they were exploring it as an option.

The original terminal plan by Weaver's Cove, which is owned by Hess LNG, was approved by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission in 2005.

But the project faces several government obstacles. Fall River has spent at least $1.4 million fighting the project.

The Coast Guard has rejected the original Weaver's Cove proposal, citing safety and navigation concerns that the path along the river approaching the terminal is unsafe for navigation by massive LNG tankers.

The new plan calls for a four-mile LNG pipeline that would be buried in a trench beneath portions of Mount Hope Bay and Taunton River leading to an LNG storage and processing terminal located on the banks of the river.

The LNG would be stored at the terminal until it was turned back into gas for delivery through pipelines to homes and businesses throughout the region. LNG would also be trucked from the terminal to other LNG storage tanks throughout New England.

Weaver's Cove has said the region needs new LNG facilities to help meet rising energy demands and high prices.