The potential closure of the Everett LNG import terminal in New England next year could jeopardize the reliability and affordability of the region’s energy supplies, FERC and the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) warned in a joint statement.
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Chairman Willie Phillips and NERC CEO James Robb expressed concerns over the possible closure and what the absence of Everett could mean for New England in the event of another event like Winter Storm Elliott, which slammed the East Coast late last year.
During the storm, Phillips and Robb pointed out that both electric and natural gas systems throughout much of the eastern half of the United States were subjected to significant stress. That resulted in unplanned generating unit losses, with nearly 90,000 MW out at the same time.
“Although much of the attention has focused on the electric outages, the storm’s effects on the natural gas system, and the local gas distribution system in particular, cannot be overlooked,” they wrote, adding that gas flows into pipelines were reduced by the storm.
The Everett terminal is connected to the Tennessee Gas Pipeline and Algonquin Gas Transmission system, which both feed about 12,000 MW of gas-fired power units. The terminal can be used during peak winter demand or to help fill the void if the gas systems come under stress. Constellation Energy Corp., Everett’s owner, said the facility also provides about 3.4 Bcf of storage capacity for New England.
Located in Boston Harbor, Everett is the oldest facility of its kind in the United States. It is one of three import terminals that serve New England.
Northeast Gateway in Massachusetts Bay and the Saint John import terminal in New Brunswick, Canada, also serve the region. But Gateway, which can accommodate floating storage and regasification units, hasn’t imported a cargo since January 2022, according to Kpler data.
Everett has imported 0.67 million tons (Mt) of LNG since the beginning of last year, while the Saint John terminal has imported only 0.42 Mt over the same time for distribution to both Canada and New England, according to Kpler.
The 1,400 MW natural gas-fired Mystic Generating Station is located near the Everett terminal. According to grid operator ISO-New England (ISO-NE), Mystic is the LNG facility’s largest customer. With its retirement, scheduled for next summer, there are concerns that the Everett terminal may retire as well.
Phillips and Robb said evidence presented during FERC’s New England Winter Gas-Electric Forum in June said the potential closure of Everett could be manageable in the near term. They stressed, however, that if expectations for resource development and limited load growth, among other factors, don’t materialize, “ensuring reliability and affordability could become challenging in the face of a significant winter event.”
They encouraged further discussions around Everett’s future to focus on reliability and affordability. They also urged ISO-NE to pursue reforms aimed at ensuring the electric system remains reliable by incentivizing resources to obtain fuel supplies for energy.
“To the extent that Everett or other infrastructure plays a role in supporting electric reliability by making needed energy supplies available, in the near term or the future, such reforms should consider how to ensure that any needed reliability contributions are appropriately valued.”
