12. Department of Energy and Related Commissions · Minor
Weigh natural gas's reliability role in FERC pipeline application reviews
Printed page 402 12. Department of Energy and Related Commissions
“Expand and protect natural gas infrastructure in support of electric generation. FERC needs to ensure that its consideration of natural gas pipeline applications recognizes the role that natural gas plays in electric reliability. FERC also needs to make sure that RTO pricing mechanisms support generators that need to contract for natural gas service on a firm basis.”
What has happened
- Attempted
The Secretary of Energy wrote to FERC on 29 August 2025 under section 403 of the DOE Organization Act proposing that the Commission terminate the PL18-1 certificate policy proceeding and revert to the 1999 Certificate Policy Statement, whose test is need for the gas rather than the broader public-interest balancing of the 2022 draft. FERC solicited comments to 9 September 2025 and no order was found. Nothing was found on the second limb, RTO pricing mechanisms supporting generators that must contract for firm gas service.
Research log
What was searched, and what didn’t count as evidence
Research notes
The Quote asks FERC to recognize natural gas’s role in electric reliability when it reviews pipeline applications. The Secretary’s proposal moves the certificate test back toward need and away from the 2022 framework; whether FERC adopts it is unknown.
FERC orders are not published in the Federal Register, and ferc.gov would not open for us, so any Commission order after the notices cited could not be read.
- Action
- expand
- Object
- FERC natural gas pipeline applications
- ID
- 1023