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Earlier this month, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit issued a stay of the construction of the pipeline while the court considers arguments which challenge federal permits that Congress approved to expedite completion of the pipeline.
The brief reads, in part: “West Virginians have been waiting for this project to be completed for years. There are thousands of jobs and tens of millions of dollars in critically important tax revenue to the State of West Virginia at stake. There are significant property rights and hundreds of millions of dollars in royalty revenues to West Virginia property owners at stake.
“As important as the Mountain Valley Pipeline is for the jobs, royalties, and revenues so important to our economy, however, the natural gas that will be available once this project is completed is of even greater importance to this Nation’s energy security, and therefore to this Nation’s national security. This interest is paramount.”
The Mountain Valley Pipeline project is a natural gas pipeline system that spans approximately 303 miles from northwestern West Virginia to southern Virginia.
The MVP will extend the Equitrans transmission system in Wetzel County, West Virginia, to Transcontinental Gas Pipeline Company’s Zone 5 compressor station 165 in Pittsylvania County, Virginia. In addition, the project will require three compressor stations, with identified locations in Wetzel, Braxton, and Fayette counties of West Virginia.
With an estimated 20 linear miles of pipe remaining, MVP’s total project work is nearly 94% complete.
According to America First Policy Institute, the pipeline is expected to employ more than 2,500 workers, provide $131 million in tax revenues to Virginia and West Virginia, and provide an additional $45 million in annual tax revenue to Virginia and West Virginia.
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