New England gets what it chose by blocking gas pipelines
Tom KirkmanIndependent Project Manager
Blocking natural gas pipelines has consequences.
So does shutting down LNG receiving terminals.
Good luck New England in your quest to totally eliminate those evil energy demons of oil and gas and coal and nuclear, and thrive 100% on electricity generated solely from intermittent weather-dependent wind and solar.
Think I’ll make some popcorn and watch the expected incoming deep freeze and snow storms due soon in the U.S. Northeast and see how well the much vaunted “energy transition” is working out in real life.
If this winter is colder than usual, expect the grand “energy transition” theories of completely eliminating hydrocarbons, to go extinct due to Energy Darwin Awards.
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“A natural gas terminal that’s been operating for more than half a century has been a crucial safeguard against blackouts when bone-chilling cold hits the US Northeast.
In less than five months, it’s slated to shut forever.
The Everett gas import plant near Boston is at risk of closing in May, coinciding with the retirement of its biggest customer, the Mystic power station.
Both facilities are owned by Constellation Energy Corp., which has said Mystic is uneconomic to operate under most conditions.
Everett’s closure would jeopardize the reliability of the region’s power system in extreme weather, according to the nation’s top energy regulators.
Because New England lacks enough pipelines to get gas from other parts of the country, it relies on Everett when heating demand spikes.
The terminal receives cargoes of liquefied natural gas via tankers, mostly from Trinidad.
The facility’s shutdown underscores the challenges facing America’s grid as the transition to cleaner energy accelerates and climate change triggers wilder weather.
While Mystic may ultimately be replaced by wind farms and solar projects, it’s not clear whether those resources
— and the battery storage needed to back them up —
will be built quickly enough to prevent power shortfalls.
… Gas is often seen as a transition fuel as the world moves to more environmentally friendly ways to generate power and heat. Everett’s closure is a sign of that shift, according to Greg Cunningham, vice president of clean energy and climate change at the Conservation Law Foundation, an environmental nonprofit.
“There are going to be facilities that are fossil based and climate damaging that are going to go offline, and that are going to be replaced by alternatives that public policy and the markets now have chosen,” he said.
… Long-term planning for gas demand hinges on how successful Massachusetts can be in its push to cut the use of the fuel for home heating in the next decade, Gary Cunningham said. …”