The Northeast and New England market will see a continuing demand for natural gas, according to several studies. Estimates are that by 2015 there may be a total peak supply/demand deficit of up to 1.25 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd).  Because of the forecasted demand and limited alternative supply options, an additional land-based LNG terminal is needed in New England.

Failure to provide additional gas supply will inevitably result in fewer and more expensive gas supply options for consumers, as well as supply shortages in the near term and serious supply shortages and higher costs in the long term.

The Downeast LNG terminal will provide the region with a reliable, long-term, and competitively priced source of natural gas.

Although there are other fossil fuel options for meeting the projected growth in energy demand, the reliance on oil-based petroleum products for home heating and power generation will have negative environmental consequences. Increased use of fuels such as oil or coal would likely result in higher emission rates of nitrogen oxides (NOx), sulfur dioxide (SO2) and greenhouse gases, creating substantial cumulative impacts. 

Moreover, in the past decade New England and Maine have built over 10,000 MWs of gas fired power plants to meet electricity demand growth.  Wind is increasingly an option to meet some electricity demand growth, but due to power system constraints and its inherently intermittent nature, wind power can realistically meet only 20% of electricity demand.

Therefore, an additional LNG terminal in the region can provide a safe, reliable, cost-effective, and environmentally beneficial baseload supply of natural gas to customers in New England during normal and peak usage times. 

In short, the Downeast LNG project will…

…benefit consumers in the New England region through the energy price stability associated with reliable natural gas supplies;

…provide direct and indirect jobs in an area of Maine that desperately needs sustainable economic activity;

… prevent degradation of regional environmental quality conditions and,

…assist local communities and the State of Maine through project-generated tax revenue.