John Engler, president of the National Association of Manufacturers, said Wednesday at the Alabama Manufacturer of the Year Awards that rising fuel costs present a crucial challenge to Alabama manufacturers and that limited energy supply has cost the industry thousands of jobs. ConocoPhillips’ Compass Port import facility proposed offshore Alabama “represents exactly the kind of action Alabama’s manufacturers need to stay competitive,” Engler said in a statement released in advance of the event. Read more in yesterday’s Mobile Register . [Access to archived articles requires a fee.]

In a letter dated April 11, the Long Beach Unified School District told FERC it “cannot complete a meaningful review [of the Sound Energy Solutions draft EIS] without additional information” requested in the letter, and asked FERC to revise and recirculate the draft EIS. The school district’s comments will be addressed in the final EIS but, according to Port of Long Beach official Robert Kanter, will not necessitate an extended comment period. Read more in yesterday’s Long Beach Press Telegram. LBUSD’s letter is available in the FERC e-Library in Docket No. CP04-58. [The Long Beach Press Telegram article is no longer available online.]

A Mobile, Ala. resident says that local officials should protect the public interest by filing comments with federal agencies raising safety concerns regarding the LNG terminals proposed offshore Alabama. Her op-ed is in today’s Mobile Register. [Access to archived articles requires a fee.]

An expected rise in LNG imports over the next three years may increase natural gas supply in the United States, but consumer demand for gas will likely be tempered by high price expectations, according to an analyst with Lehman Brothers. As a result, lower demand coupled with increased storage could decrease natural gas prices by as much as $1 to about $5/MMBtu in 2006, says Thomas Driscoll of Lehman Brothers. Despite anticipated increases in LNG imports, he believes that “LNG will only supply 7% of US supply in 2009.” Details are available in yesterday’s Platts LNG Daily. [Subscription required]

FERC today issued the final Environmental Impact Statement for Sempra’s proposed Port Arthur LNG terminal, concluding that the project would have limited adverse environmental impact if certain mitigating measures are implemented. The document addresses air emissions, and the impact of vessel traffic on waterway access. The Port Arthur terminal would be located in Jefferson County, Texas and provide between 1.5 and 3.5 Bcf/d of supply to markets in Texas and Louisiana. The FEIS is available in the FERC e-Library in Docket No. CP05-83.

Today FERC issued the Final Environmental Impact Statement for Dominion’s proposed expansion of the Cove Point LNG terminal on the Chesapeake Bay in Maryland and the associated pipeline expansions. FERC found that the 800 MMcf/day expansion would have limited environmental impacts with appropriate mitigation measures. The FEIS is available in the FERC e-Library in Docket No. CP05-130.

FERC today issued the final EIS for BP’s proposed Crown Landing terminal in Logan Township, New Jersey; FERC Staff found that adverse environmental impacts will be limited if Crown Landing meets certain conditions and undertakes certain mitigation measures. In particular, the final EIS addresses the coastal jurisdictional dispute, now before the United States Supreme Court, between New Jersey and Delaware. FERC Staff recommends that Crown Landing and Texas Eastern document federal consistency concurrence under the coastal programs of both New Jersey and Delaware before beginning construction, though Staff also notes that the Supreme Court’s decision could impact this recommendation. Texas Eastern, which has proposed the pipeline to serve Crown Landing, already has received federal consistency concurrence from Pennsylvania. The final EIS is available here and in the FERC e-libraryat Docket No. CP04-411.

The Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency is soliciting public comment on the comprehensive environmental study that it prepared for the 610 MMcf/d Kitimat LNG terminal proposed for British Columbia. Interested parties have until May 26 to submit comments on the project. Operation is scheduled to begin in early 2009. Read more in today’s Daily Oil Bulletin. [Subscription required]

Ocean Resources reports that Repsol YPF and Irving Oil, the developers behind the proposed 1Bcf/d Canaport LNG facility in New Brunswick, are exploring potential financing options for the project. Representatives from Repsol have said that financing efforts will not impact construction on the terminal, which is expected to start this spring. Operation is scheduled to begin in 2008.

According to the Mobile Register, speakers at last night’s hearing on the ConocoPhillips Compass Port proposal divided between concern for energy supply and concern about the impact of the proposed open-loop design on the regional fishing industry. The meeting was held at the Dauphin Island Chamber of Commerce and was the first of two scheduled by the Coast Guard; the second will be held tonight in Pascagoula, Miss. [Access to archived articles requires a fee.]