Environmentalists are putting up a new roadblock to try and stop the Atlantic Coast Pipeline. The Southern Environmental Law Center is asking Washington to take a closer look at whether it’s actually needed and who its customers will be. Sandy Hausman explains.
Lawyer Will Cleveland makes a simple claim:
“We can keep our lights on fine without this pipeline!”
And the staff attorney at the Southern Environmental Law Center says consumers need to understand the economics of this project.
“It’s going to make money for the Dominion shareholders," he asserts. "Other than that, it’s going to cost everybody else a lot of money.”
He points out that, under federal law, Dominion is entitled to a 14% profit on this project, whether the pipeline is needed or not. Dominion insists there will be demand, but Cleveland is doubtful.
“Electricity growth has been stagnant for the last several years," he explains. "Some of the utilities and grid operators are acknowledging that economic growth and load growth really don’t move in parallel anymore, so if we don’t need the power plants, and we already have enough to provide for what we’ve got, why do we need another pipeline?”
Dominion Energy has told regulators that it already has customers lined up, but Cleveland says it’s a shell game. The firm’s main customer in this state is its sister company – the monopoly supplier of electricity -- Dominion Virginia Power.
"Dominion is going to use its captive customers to pay itself to build the pipeline, and nobody is looking at this. FERC isn’t looking at this. The State Corporation Commission isn’t looking at it. Everybody is allowing this to fly under the radar, and we are looking at potentially $5-$6 billion of cost that rate payers and customers are going to pay for when we don’t need it," Cleveland says.
So his organization wants to put the whole business “on trial.” It’s officially asking the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to hold a hearing on the truth of claims that the Atlantic Coast Pipeline is needed.