La. Admin. Code tit. 43 § XI-133

Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 11, November 20, 2024

Section XI-133 - Transportation of Intrastate Natural Gas and the Construction, Extension, Acquisition and Operation of Facilities or Extensions Thereof for the Purpose of Acquisition of Gas Supplies within a Gas Supply Acquisition Service Area or Transportation of Gas Supplies for Others within a Gas Supply Transportation Service Area Pursuant to the Provisions of Section 555(F) of the Act

A. This regulation shall apply to the requirements placed by Section 555(F) of the Act upon an intrastate natural gas transporter relative to the transportation of intrastate natural gas and the construction, extension, acquisition and operation of facilities, or extensions thereof, for the purpose of acquisition of gas supplies within a gas supply acquisition service area or transportation of gas supplies for others within a gas supply transportation service area.

B. Each transporter owning or operating an intrastate pipeline, the construction and operation of which has been approved by order of the commissioner under Section 555. C of the Act, shall have the right to apply to the commissioner for the establishment of a gas supply acquisition service area or gas supply transportation service area. Within such gas supply acquisition service area or gas supply transportation service area a transporter may at its option enlarge or extend its facilities, by construction or acquisition, for the purpose of acquiring or transporting for others additional supplies of natural gas. All applications by the transporter filed with the commissioner requesting the establishment of a gas supply acquisition service area or gas supply transportation service area shall be in writing, verified under oath by an individual having authority, shall be in the form approved by the commissioner, shall be noticed upon interested parties by publication in the official journal of the state of Louisiana and the official journal of each parish within which the gas supply acquisition service area or gas supply transportation service area will be located, and shall contain the information required by §125 All information required to be included within the application which has been presented to the commissioner through prior hearing evidence and all records and documents in the possession of the commissioner filed pursuant to the Natural Resources and Energy Act of 1973 may be incorporated in the application by reference. Each application shall include a map depicting the location of the transporter's existing intrastate pipeline to which facilities constructed or acquired pursuant to this regulation shall connect.

C. All orders of the commissioner establishing gas supply acquisition service areas or gas supply transportation service areas shall be subject to the following limitations and restrictions.

1. Location. A gas supply acquisition service area or gas supply transportation service area shall be located adjacent to the applicant's existing pipeline facilities.

2. Size. Facilities constructed or acquired pursuant to this regulation shall not exceed 5 miles in length and nominal 8 inches diameter pipe.

3. Duration. An order of the commissioner establishing a gas supply acquisition service area or gas supply transportation service area shall remain in effect until terminated by subsequent order of the commissioner.

4. Interconnections. An order of the commissioner establishing a gas supply acquisition service area or gas supply transportation service area shall not permit a transporter to connect its facilities located within the gas supply acquisition service area or gas supply transportation service area to another pipeline system, including other pipelines or pipeline systems owned by the transporter.

5. Sales. An order of the commissioner establishing a gas supply acquisition service area or gas supply transportation service area shall not permit a transporter to construct, extend, acquire or operate facilities, or extensions thereof, within such gas supply acquisition service area or gas supply transportation service area for the purpose of connecting such transporter's facilities to a customer and making sales of gas to such customer.

6. Abandonment of Facilities. An order of the commissioner establishing a gas supply acquisition service area or gas supply transportation service area shall not permit a transporter to abandon all or any portion of its facilities subject to the jurisdiction of the commissioner, or any service rendered by means of such facilities, within such gas supply acquisition service area or gas supply transportation service area.

7. Facilities Not Subject to Jurisdiction of Commissioner. An order of the commissioner shall not establish gas supply acquisition service areas or gas supply transportation service areas in conjunction with facilities which are not subject to the jurisdiction of the commissioner under the Act.

8. Notice and Prohibition of Proposed Enlargement or Extension. Prior to enlarging or extending its facilities within a gas supply acquisition service area or gas supply transportation service area, a transporter shall give the commissioner 20 days notice, on a form approved by the commissioner, of the location, size, nature and purpose of the proposed enlargement or extension. The notice shall be contemporaneously mailed to those persons who are identified in the ad valorem tax records of the parish as the owners of the land to be traversed by the proposed facility, with notice that objections to the proposed facility, must be made to the commissioner, in writing, within 10 days of the date of the notice. The commissioner may, within such 20-day period, beginning on the date of receipt of the written notice in the Office of Conservation, prohibit the proposed construction or acquisition under the order establishing the gas supply acquisition service area or gas supply transportation service area and require the transporter to apply for an order to construct and operate the proposed facilities pursuant to Section 555. C of the Act. Upon request by the transporter, the commissioner may notify the transporter verbally, to be immediately confirmed in writing prior to the end of the 20-day notice period that he has no objection to the construction or acquisition of the proposed facility and that the transporter may immediately construct or acquire and operate the proposed facility.

D. The commissioner upon proper showing, shall issue his order in accordance with the application submitted.

E. A transporter who has been issued an order establishing a gas supply acquisition service area or gas supply transportation service area may make application for an extension or the establishment of additional gas supply acquisition service area or gas supply transportation service area in connection with an application made pursuant to Section 555(C) of the Act.

F. The commissioner shall issue written confirmation to a transporter that the proposed construction, extension, acquisition and operation of facilities, or extensions thereof, within a gas supply acquisition service area or gas supply transportation service area is authorized by and in compliance with the order establishing the gas supply acquisition service area or gas supply transportation service area. Such confirmation shall be on a form adopted by the commissioner and shall be issued within 10 days after the end of the notification period provided in Paragraph C.8 of this regulation.

G. All hearings under Section 555(F) of the Act shall be in accordance with the rules of procedure of the commissioner, except that notification of interested parties shall be in accordance with this regulation.

H. Nothing contained in this regulation shall be construed as a limitation upon the power of the commissioner to order overlapping gas supply acquisition service areas or gas supply transportation service areas for service of an area already being served by another transporter.

I. Any action taken by a transporter within a gas supply acquisition service area or gas supply transportation service area shall be subject to all other rules and regulations pursuant to R.S. 30:501 et seq., and the Louisiana Constitution of 1974.

La. Admin. Code tit. 43, § XI-133

Promulgated by the Department of Natural Resources, Office of Conservation, LR 4:85 (March 1978), amended LR 7:80 (March 1981), LR 21:824 (August 1995).

AUTHORITY NOTE: Promulgated in accordance with R.S. 30:501-599, 601-606.