The gathering of a group of 24 states in North America to protect the natural gas industry’s position as a supplier of clean affordable and efficient energy, has led to legislation pushing for that choice. It takes strong legislation to assure all can be part of an energy mix involving competitive and fair pricing, where the public good is not based on a climate change narrative, rather a reality of costs.
We have seen an increase in cost, specifically in hydro power, its added capacity, and environmental requirements to bring it to market. The courts and arbitration will play a critical role in how natural gas projects are done, as are other energy-driven projects, whether it be solar, wind, or renewable gas include the third party. That third party is recognized as the public citizen, who has a stake in the decisions made by the politicians, that is not heard loud enough, especially when it comes to choose.
In the last 10 years, a narrative object to progressing to new added infrastructure that moves liquid-formed energy products across continents and inter-state pipelines, linking share networks of pipelines to bring affordable exports to key buyers. The multi-lateral, bi-lateral agreements, whether between the USA and Mexico or Brazil and Panama, will consider where the direct parties have considered the impact on the public.
Jurisdictional considerations have had the municipalities versus the state override the state decision which left states or groups to bring their voice to the court system. This is clearly seen in the US federal courts of appeal specifically in the Ninth Circuit of the Berkley, California municipal gas ban on the grounds that the city officials overstepped their authority. This can be used as a premise for other states that are using municipal decisions that are far overriding, in terms of the jurisdictional power of the province or the state.
This draws the complexity to projects themselves that do have international investors coming into a playing field of strict environmental rules that play a benefit to some over others in its reach. The benefit of investing in pipelines and bridges, including roads access points, is the demand of energy being moved in all spaces, not limited to one pathway, but others.
For example, rail lines compete with many exporters and shippers, where natural gas or LNG producers will utilize what is not on road or rail to pipeline, as it is not shared by many commodity users. Legal battles in how the land is used will deter those that have lost much more than just financial resource, but time to get the project and product to market before price declines. This is very evident in the time frame it has taken Canada to come on board the race of North American LNG with Mexico and the US, using their networks and agreements to push supply down South.
