(The Center Square) – Federal regulators on Friday approved a combined multi-billion-dollar natural gas pipeline expansion crossing Mississippi and Alabama primarily intended to feed growing energy markets in Georgia.
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission issued a joint order authorizing construction of both the $1.7 billion Mississippi Crossing Project and the $3.5 billion South System Expansion 4. The two projects would connect near Butler, Alabama, enabling additional natural gas supplies to reach pipeline networks that serve Georgia.
Project developer Kinder Morgan says the pipeline expansions will boost regional energy reliability and generate approximately 750 temporary construction jobs along the MSX route. While Kinder Morgan has not specified an overall construction job total for the larger SSE4 pipeline, executives say businesses in Alabama and Georgia will see a financial boost from the construction activity. More than 90% of the project’s capacity has been presold under contracts with commercial users and utilities, the company said.
The 206-mile MSX Project is designed to carry up to 2.1 billion cubic feet per day of gas supply across 10 Mississippi counties to the terminal in Alabama. From there, the 300-mile SSE4 project will interconnect with pipeline networks in Alabama and Georgia.
Before beginning construction, Kinder Morgan must first satisfy stipulated environmental conditions and secure an administrative notice to proceed from federal regulators.
Project critics contend that local utility customers along the pipeline’s path will unfairly bear the long-term financial and environmental burdens of an expansion aimed primarily at supplying AI data centers and other commercial facilities.
In a statement emailed to The Center Square, the Sierra Club said communities across Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia have rallied against the two projects due to the cost to taxpayers, threats to clean water and local ecosystems, and concerns from landowners whose property will be jeopardized.
“It’s incredibly disappointing – but utterly unsurprising – that FERC has shirked its responsibility to protect everyday Americans from dangerous and unnecessary projects like MSX and SSE4,” said Jasmine Vazin, Deputy Director with Sierra Club’s Beyond Dirty Fuels campaign.
“These projects pose critical public health and environmental risks for the communities they would impact, but FERC and the Trump Administration only seem to care about powering the A.I. data center boom and protecting profits for Fossil Fuel executives,” Vazin said.