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Enbridge outlines Algonquin pipeline enhancement; landowner surveys to begin
Summary
Enbridge presented a high-level plan to replace portions of a 16‑inch line with a 36‑inch pipeline along a G1 section that will pass through Mendon, Bellingham, Franklin, Wrentham and into Rhode Island; company officials said landowner survey letters will go out within a week and construction could begin in 2029 pending FERC and state permits.
Enbridge officials briefed the Wrentham Select Board on Nov. 4 about a proposed enhancement to the Algonquin pipeline system that would replace an existing 16‑inch segment with a 36‑inch pipeline on a roughly 7.1‑mile G1 route that would traverse Mendon, Bellingham, Franklin, Wrentham and continue to Cumberland, Rhode Island.
Guy Gllotus, Enbridge community and legislative liaison, framed the proposal as a brownfield replacement intended to improve system reliability and help stabilize energy costs in New England. “It’s not a green‑field new project. It’s a brownfield project,” he said, adding that the company expects the upgrade to reduce reliance on more expensive imported LNG and cited an estimate that the project could save ratepayers hundreds of millions of dollars over a decade.
John Sheridan, Enbridge director of government relations, said the company plans to send survey letters to landowners within a week and begin survey fieldwork in December, with detailed mapping and a public open house planned for April–May. Nancy Kiss, director of land and right‑of‑way, said surveyors would look within existing 70‑foot easements and request permission to survey up to 150 feet on either side of the centerline to collect environmental, cultural and engineering data. She emphasized that permission to survey does not equate to approval of construction or transfer of property rights and that compensation would be offered for any construction use of private land outside existing easements.
Sheridan said Enbridge expects to file with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission in August or September and anticipates potential construction in 2029 with an in‑service date later that year. The company pledged to continue outreach, to provide town staff with the landowner letter in advance, and to coordinate follow‑up briefings.
Select Board members asked about the likely construction footprint, impacts to conservation land and whether upgrading the line would materially benefit Wrentham residents given relatively low local natural‑gas hookups; town staff said they would follow up with Enbridge for counts of residential and commercial gas users.
Next steps: Enbridge will send landowner letters and begin survey work; the town manager will receive the letter in advance and the company plans an open house after surveys and mapping are complete.
