Department of Transportation United States of America: The Secretary's Decision on the Deepwater Port License Application of El Paso Energy Bridge, Gulf of Mexico, LLC., December 31, 2003

摘要

The Deepwater Port Act of 1974, as amended in 1984, 1996 and 2002 (hereinafter the Act) declared it to be the purpose of Congress to ...authorize and regulate the location, ownership, construction, and operation of deepwater ports in waters beyond the territorial limits of the United States. Deepwater ports, as the term has been amended, includes facilities constructed at sea which are used as terminals to transfer natural gas, usually received in the form of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) fkom LNG carriers, to onshore storage facilities and pipelines. According to the U.S. Department of Energy,4 energy consumption in the United States is expected to increase more rapidly than domestic energy production through 2025. Further, natural gas demand is expected to exceed domestic production during this period requiring a more than doubling of natural gas imports by 2025. Natural gas can be imported via pipelines from neighboring nations or by ship using specialized LNG carriers. In order to receive LNG, specialized port facilities are required. Currently four such land-based LNG import facilities exist in the continental United States. To meet the expected demand for LNG imports, several more import facilities or facility expansions will be necessary. Recognizing the need for No abstract availablenew LNG import facilities, the Act was amended to provide American industry with the option of constructing new LNG port facilities in the waters beyond the United States territorial limits. The construction and operation of deepwater ports will enhance the options available for the importation of natural gas into the United States, thus allowing this nation to benefit from the economic and environmental advantages of LNG imports.