ELR Citation: 55 ELR 20001
No(s). 23-1288 (D.C. Cir. Dec 20, 2024)

The D.C. Circuit denied a pipeline operator's petition to review a FERC order authorizing abandonment, subject to a condition, of a natural gas pipeline it operated off the Louisiana and Texas coasts. The operator had applied for an abandonment order after a segment of the pipeline was damaged by a hurricane, and FERC granted the application but imposed the condition that the operator either had to restore the damaged segment or reach agreement with the shipper whose service was interrupted before the operator could sell the pipeline to an entity outside FERC's jurisdiction. The operator petitioned for review, arguing FERC's decision to condition abandonment was arbitrary and capricious. The court found the Commission's order was lawful because it reasonably balanced the evidence before it, notably the operator's repeated representations that it had no intention of abandoning the damaged segment in place, and that FERC acted reasonably in concluding that abandonment was not consistent with public convenience and necessity absent the condition. It denied the petition.