In 1999, Bangor enters into a contract with HQUS to build a pipeline from an existing trunk pipeline to an end user in Maine. The contract calls for a fixed annual charge, payable monthly, for a fifteen-year period. Bangor does not build the pipeline with a direct connection to the trunk pipeline. Instead it contracts with the owner of the trunk pipeline for the owner to build a 410-foot lateral pipeline that will connect the trunk pipeline with the Bangor pipeline. The lateral segment is not mentioned in the Bangor/HQUS contract. For several years, HQUS makes it monthly payments and Bangor compensates the trunk pipeline for the use of the lateral. In 2006, HQUS learns of the existence of the lateral. At the same time Bangor is acquired by its parent. The parent then raises the issue that it is in violation of the FERC's "shipper-must-have-title" rule because Bangor does not have title to the gas being transported through the lateral.
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