Pembina, the company behind the controversial Jordan Cove Energy Project, has withdrawn its application for a permit essential to completing the pipeline.
The decision to withdraw was announced January 23, over two years since the application was originally filed, and two days after the Department of State Lands denied Pembina’s request for an extension.
The company has stated that they were unable to provide DSL with the required information in time to meet the department’s deadline of January 31. However, according to DSL Communications Director Ali Ryan Hansen, “The applicant was aware for a very long time of what we needed.”
This represents a major setback for the project, as without a removal-fill permit Pembina won’t be able to begin dredging in Coos Bay and neighboring waterways. Furthermore, Hansen told OPB, they’ll have to start the application process all over from the beginning.
While environmental groups see this as a victory, some Oregon Lawmakers see this as a stalling tactic on the part of Pembina.
In a letter to DSL Director Vicki Walker, State Senator Jeff Golden and State Representative Pam Marsh wrote “The applicant’s behavior over the last year … suggests to us that they are not significantly focused on gaining necessary approval from state agencies. It appears that they are counting instead on approval of their broader application to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.”
An email from Jordan Cove spokesman Paul Vogel would seem to confirm this. “Having received all local land use permits,” it reads, “the next major milestone in Jordan Cove’s regulatory process will be the final determination by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) on February 13, 2020, at which time we will determine our path forward.”
By Brandon Urey
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