250 miles of natural gas pipeline proposed

250 miles of natural gas pipeline proposed

Katie Landeck & Eryn Dion
News Staff Writers

REGION — Local communities are being approached by officials from Tennessee Gas Pipeline Co., an entity interested in constructing roughly 250 miles of new pipeline through northern Worcester County.

“The project is in its very early stages,” said Tennessee Gas Pipeline Co. spokesman Richard Wheatley.

Officials from Athol, Ashburnham and Winchendon have already been contacted by representatives from the company, which is a subsidiary of Kinder Morgan Inc.

The proposal, dubbed the Northeast Expansion Project, is being sought to upgrade existing Tennessee Gas Pipeline systems within New York, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Connecticut. In addition to the construction of approximately 250 miles of new pipeline, the project would require the setup of new meter stations and modifications to existing facilities in order to carry natural gas to the eastern part of the state — according to a recent press release.


An estimated 3,000 jobs will be created during the project’s peak construction period should the proposal move ahead.

Ashburnham’s Town Administrator Doug Briggs said he first heard from a representatives of Northeast Land Services, a company surveying land on behalf of Tennessee Gas Pipeline Co., a week ago, but he was given little information about the actual project.

“They had a map that showed they were looking to put in a pipe and the projected route,” said Mr. Briggs.

The proposed pipeline would cross over two parcels of town land, Mr. Briggs said, and the surveyors were in the area assessing the property and touching base with homeowners in the vicinity. Mr. Briggs also said his office received several phone calls from citizens making sure the surveyors were legitimate.

Representatives from Northeast Land Services were not immediately available for comment, however, maps of the proposed expansion show the pipeline running through northern Worcester and Franklin counties before linking up with an existing line in Dracut.

Winchendon Town Manager James Kreidler said project officials have approached landowners in Toy Town as well, seeking permission to conduct general surveying.

“We’ve been given a preliminary notice that we’re being considered,” Mr. Kreidler said. “We weren’t given specific locations.”

A lot of the vagueness surrounding the proposed pipeline is a result of the project’s being in initial, planning stages, according to Mr. Wheatley.

“All the route alternatives are very much under review,” he said.

The proposed route for the pipeline runs through the communities of Athol, Ashburnham, Royalston and Winchendon, and connects existing Tennessee Gas Pipelines.

At this point, the Tennessee company’s main focus is to acquire companies who want to ship the natural gas through the proposed pipeline and customers to use the gas, according to Mr. Wheatley. These commitments must be contracted before the company will proceed.

“Without commitments, we can’t go forward,” Mr. Wheatley said. “We can’t build on speculation.”

The company does not own the natural gas, but instead offers natural gas companies a way to distribute their product.

This project is likely to benefit the Utica shale fields in upstate New York and Marcellus shale fields in Pennsylvania, according to Mr. Wheatley. However, since the line will be connected to Tennessee Gas’s network, the natural gas could be shipped from as far away as Texas.

If the company finds committed vendors, they will then start the formal permit application process with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

Mr. Wheatley noted the permitting process is lengthy and requires a substantial environmental component.

“It requires tremendous amount of data,” he said.

The expansion project is under consideration in order to meet increased demand in the Northeast for transportation capacity of nation gas — a clean, environmental friendly energy source produced domestically, according to a release by the company.

The company anticipates construction to start in 2017 with plans to offer services by November 2018