The California Public Utilities Commission rejected Thursday Southern California Gas' request to build a $621.3 million natural gas pipeline, finding that there were less-expensive options for maintaining reliability in the San Diego area.
SoCal Gas failed to show that the North-South project was needed, PUC Commissioner Mike Florio said, noting the project wouldn't increase the state's gas supply.
The pipeline would have run about 31 miles from Adelanto to the Moreno pressure limiting station. The project included rebuilding the Adelanto compressor station.
SoCal Gas argued the project would boost reliability on the southern part of its system by giving it access to the Honor Rancho storage field on the northern system. The southern part of SoCal Gas' system includes parts of San Bernardino, Riverside, Imperial and San Diego counties, Florio said.
But with Aliso Canyon in the north essentially out of action, there wouldn't be excess gas to serve the south, according to Florio, who also said investment in the pipeline didn't make sense at a time when California is trying to reduce its use of fossil fuels.
The PUC, as part of the review process, considered competing proposals from Transwestern Pipeline, TransCanada PipeLines and El Paso Natural Gas.
Although the project would have boosted gas supply for power plants, the Southern California Generation Coalition urged the PUC to reject the pipeline, saying system reliability issues could be handled using existing non-physical supply tools or by entering into supply contracts with interstate pipelines. Southern California Edison also opposed the proposal, while Shell Energy North America supported it.
Commissioner Catherine Sandoval urged the PUC to look more broadly at supply issues in Southern California and the interplay between the gas and power sectors.
