2023-04-03 14:34:38 ET
Equitrans Midstream ( NYSE: ETRN ) -10.4% in Monday's trading after the U.S. Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals rejected a critical West Virginia water permit for the Mountain Valley Pipeline.
The court vacated the Clean Water Act certification issued by the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection, finding the agency's justification behind its conclusion that the pipeline would not violate the state's water quality standards was deficient.
The court remanded the decision to the DEP, precluding the Army Corps of Engineers' ability to issue a CWA discharge permit, and likely ruining plans to put the Mountain Valley Pipeline into service this year.
Last week , the same court upheld a water quality certification granted in Virginia.
Mountain Valley Pipeline has violated its construction permit 139 times during the past two years and committed at least 46 narrative water quality standards violations, but the DEP said the violations occurred because of the "size and nature" of the project and that MVP would comply going forward.
"The department cannot have it both ways and the blatant contradiction in its reasoning leaves its explanation wanting," the court wrote.
The $6.2B pipeline is more than 90% constructed, according to the consortium led by Equitrans Midstream ( ETRN ), with partners NextEra Energy ( NEE ), Consolidated Edison ( ED ), AltaGas ( OTCPK:ATGFF ) and RGC Resources ( RGCO ).
Goldman Sachs recently downgraded Equitrans ( ETRN ) to Sell from Buy, citing continued delays to the Mountain Valley Pipeline project .
For further details see:
Court vacates key Mountain Valley Pipeline water permit in major setback