DEIS Available for Beacon Port LNG
The U.S. Coast Guard and the Maritime Administration (MARAD) have made available the draft environmental impact statement (DEIS) for ConocoPhillips’ proposed Beacon Port LNG Deepwater Port in the Gulf of Mexico. The proposed terminal would be approximately 50 miles east-southeast of Galveston, Texas, and designed to handle an average delivery of approximately 1.5 billion standard cubic feet per day (Bscfd) from LNG carriers up to 253,000 m3 in size. While the DEIS does not take a final position on the appropriateness of the Beacon Port facility, it concludes that the cumulative effect of multiple LNG terminals in the Gulf “could have minor, adverse, cumulative impacts on water quality,” and other areas of concern such as maritime traffic, land use, offshore recreation, and visual resources. It considers the pros and cons of open rack vaporizers compared to alternative regasification systems, but does not draw a final conclusion as to the most appropriate system. The DEIS is available in the DOT Docket Management System in Docket 21232, and comments are due on or before April 17, 2006.