Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Pipeline Siting Thunder Butte topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
PSC approves Thunder Butte pipeline certificate with depth-of-cover study condition
Summary
The PSC approved Thunder Butte Pipeline LLC’s corridor compatibility certificate and route permit for a project to move crude oil from the Fort Berthold Reservation to Enbridge’s Stanley terminal, with a pre-operation study requirement for depth-of-cover along existing pipeline segments.
The North Dakota Public Service Commission on May 8 approved Thunder Butte Pipeline LLC’s certificate of corridor compatibility and route permit for the proposed Thunder Butte pipeline project, finding the project would produce minimal adverse environmental effects if mitigation measures are implemented.
Commissioner Jill Grinstead moved adoption of the findings of fact, conclusions of law and order. The project, a joint venture between Gap Midstream LLC and the Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara Nation (Three Affiliated Tribes), would construct about 3.84 miles of new underground pipeline, convert roughly 31 miles of existing gathering line to a transmission pipeline and build a new pump station. The pipeline is described as about 6.5 inches in diameter, with a maximum allowable operating pressure of 1,400 psi and a maximum design capacity of 24,000 barrels per day; the commission recorded an expected service date of November 2025 and an estimated cost of $19.6 million.
The commission noted Thunder Butte had notified 42 federal, state and local agencies and agreed to mitigation measures including a weed-management plan, stormwater pollution prevention, tree and shrub mitigation, a leak-detection system and full hydrostatic testing before operations. The PSC cited state siting criteria for exclusion and avoidance areas, observed that part of the existing pipeline lies within 1,200 feet of an ICBM launch site but predates the siting law, and accepted Thunder Butte’s explanation that rerouting would cause greater impacts. The commission approved the certificate and required Thunder Butte to file a depth-of-cover study for the entire existing pipeline and proposed mitigation plans for any deficiencies for PSC approval prior to operations.
The motion passed by unanimous voice vote.
