A Supreme Court ruling Monday regarding the Atlantic Coast Pipeline, a joint-venture between Dominion and Duke Energy, will help increase access to affordable, abundant energy produced in the Appalachian Basin for southeast consumers.
“Pipeline projects like the Atlantic Coast Pipeline are crucial for American energy security, our economy and our environment,” Alex Oehler, interim President and CEO of the Interstate Natural Gas Association of America (INGAA), said of the decision.
The ACP is a critical energy infrastructure project that will transport natural gas – primarily produced in Pennsylvania, Ohio, and West Virginia – to consumers in Virginia and North Carolina.
This project will not only deliver clean natural gas to be utilized for sustainable power generation, but Virginians and North Carolinians will also realize significant energy savings once it comes online.
What’s more, the project will employ thousands of local workers, including many in the union building trades stimulating approximately $2.7 billion the local economies plus an added $28 million annually in tax revenue which cities and counties along the route use to fund various community initiatives.
And that’s not to mention the competitive advantage it brings to the region for further investments in energy development.
The ruling could help the regulatory approval process for other critically important infrastructure projects, including Equitrans Midstream’s Mountain Valley Pipeline, which will connect consumers, manufacturers, and hospitals in Virginia and North Carolina to abundant West Virginia and Pennsylvania-produced natural gas.
The MVP is poised to spur $34 million in Virginia state and local tax revenue and $47 million in West Virginia. The Southgate Extension will add $4.1 million to Virginia and stimulate $6.3 million in North Carolina state and local tax revenue.
Projects such as the ACP and the MVP are just a few examples of energy infrastructure projects that will enable more people to benefit from Pa.’s abundant supply of natural gas.
Continuing to enhance our region’s – and nation’s – pipeline network, as the Supreme Court’s decision supports, will ween states like New York and others in the northeast away from relying on foreign energy, achieving climate and economic progress for all Americans.
As MSC’s Spigelmyer said, “these job-creating pipeline projects, safely built by skilled union trades, are lifelines to economic opportunity, lower energy costs and continued climate progress.”
