Downeast LNG | Press Release

Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Dean Girdis - 202-557-0594

November 13, 2006

or Ted O'Meara - 207-791-1461

Developer Calls For Continued Cooperation Between U.S. And Canada On Energy Issues

ROBBINSTON, Maine – The developer of a proposed LNG import terminal in eastern Maine said that his team is moving forward with their application to U.S. and state regulatory authorities and called for continued cooperation between the U.S. and Canada on energy matters.

“Americans and Canadians have cooperated on energy issues for years,” said Dean Girdis, president of Downeast LNG and a former international energy consultant. “We are asking for nothing more than a fair hearing on both sides of the border. We hope that our Canadian neighbors appreciate that the permitting process in the U.S. is comprehensive and rigorous, and that the various U.S. agencies involved are working closely with their Canadian counterparts.”

Girdis said that earlier this month he attended a U.S. - Canadian energy conference in Boston where high-ranking officials from both countries, including U.S. Ambassador to Canada David Wilkins and Canadian Minister of Natural Resources Gary Lunn, spoke about the need for continued cooperation on energy issues. Girdis quoted Ambassador Wilkins as telling the conference that “our two countries have a strong national interest in working together.”

“Just look at all of the energy-related activity in this region,” said Girdis. “Crude oil comes into Portland bound for Canadian refineries, a pipeline brings natural gas from Canada into the U.S. markets through Maine, and electrical transmission lines run between the two countries. LNG is part of this increased integration, and the market can support terminals on both sides of the border.”

Girdis also cited a new report from Canada’s Fraser Institute (www.fraserinstitute.ca), Achieving Energy Security through Integrated Canadian-American Markets, that notes “…Canada and the United States enjoy the world’s most integrated and efficient energy border.” The report goes on to state: “Canadian federal and provincial authorities should work together with their American counterparts to develop streamlined best practices and expertise in approving new LNG facilities and in regulating LNG imports.”

Girdis said that while many in Canada recognize the importance of the U.S. - Canadian energy relationship, it was regrettable some Canadian politicians are arbitrarily threatening to block the transit of LNG carriers to any terminal on the U.S. side of Passamaquoddy Bay.

“There is absolutely no legal, safety, or environmental justification for keeping LNG carriers out of Passamaquoddy Bay,” said Girdis. “It is difficult to understand why the bay would be closed to LNG ships when each year approximately 75 ships – some carrying hazardous cargoes such as ammonium nitrate – travel the same route to and from the Port of Bayside, New Brunswick.” The Bayside Port is less than a mile across the St. Croix River from Calais, Maine. Girdis reiterated that when he set out to build an LNG import terminal, he looked for the best possible site based on three key factors: sound environmental and technical characteristics; a community that would be supportive of the project; and open and deepwater access for shipping.

“We were pleased to find all of these things with the Robbinston site, including strong local support,” Girdis said, noting that local residents voted nearly three to one in favor of his project last January. “We also would not be moving forward with the project if we had any doubts about our right and ability to bring ships safely through Head Harbour and Western Passages.”

Girdis said that he has had some of the best legal minds in Canada and the U.S. look at the ship transit issue. He said that they have concluded unequivocally that Head Harbour Passage (and the Bay of Fundy) is a territorial sea and that the rights of innocent passage apply to the passage of ships bound for Maine ports.

It will be up to regulatory authorities, principally the U.S. Coast Guard, to make the final determination as to whether LNG carriers can safely navigate the waters of Passamaquoddy Bay, said Girdis, adding that ship transit simulations conducted over the summer with U.S. and Canadian pilots alike have clearly demonstrated that ships coming to the proposed facility can safely navigate local waters.

Girdis said that he and his team are sharing information and working cooperatively with Canadian officials on ship safety and other issues, and that they will continue to do so as the Downeast LNG project moves forward through the U.S. regulatory process. “It is certainly not in Canada’s best interest to put local politics ahead of international law, factual data, and a longstanding tradition of cooperation,” he said. According to Girdis, since 1959 more than 40,000 LNG carrier voyages, covering more than 60 million miles, have arrived safely without a significant accident or safety problem, either in port or on the high seas around the world.

About Downeast LNG

Downeast LNG is proposing to build a state of the art LNG import terminal at Mill Cove in Robbinston on an 80-acre site where the St. Croix River meets the Passamaquoddy Bay. The facility will consist of a single storage tank, processing equipment, a new pier and several small support buildings. The Robbinston site was selected by Downeast LNG after carefully researching and evaluating more than 27 different sites in New England and Maine. Last January, the people of Robbinston voted 227 to 83 in favor of the Downeast LNG project in a special town election.

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