Plans Revived For Natural Gas Pipeline That Will Run Under Raritan Bay

MIDDLETOWN, NJ — A natural gas pipeline that's already been killed multiple times by the state of New York is back on the table and — if it gets approved — it will enter Raritan Bay in Aberdeen Township.

This is the Northeast Supply Enhancement (NESE) pipeline from Williams Companies, a U.S. natural gas company.

NESE will carry natural gas obtained by fracking in Pennsylvania through an existing underground pipeline that already runs through Central New Jersey. The pipeline will then enter Raritan Bay in the Cliffwood Beach section of Aberdeen.

The new gas pipeline will run for six miles under the seafloor in Raritan Bay, and will carry natural gas to consumers in New York City.

Williams owns thousands of miles of pipeline across the United States, most significantly the Transcontinental pipeline (Transco), a very long pipeline that carries natural gas from the Gulf of Mexico to New York/New Jersey. If the Northeast Supply Enhancement pipeline gets built, it will be one more link in the Transco pipeline.

Here are the new pipelines Williams wants to build in New Jersey:

• 3.4 miles of new pipeline under the ground in Old Bridge and Sayreville
• That new pipeline will then connect with a new pipeline under Raritan Bay, which will run for 23.3 miles under Raritan Bay. It will enter the bay in Cliffwood Beach and terminate in Rockaway, NY. The natural gas pipeline will be buried under the Raritan Bay seafloor. It will be built by dredging, with a smaller portion near shore installed using horizontal drilling.
• Williams also wants to build a new natural gas compressor station in Franklin Township (Somerset County). The compressor station is meant to relieve gas pressure in the pipeline.

Williams is still awaiting key permits from both New Jersey and New York before it can start any work.

On their website, Williams said they hoped to begin pipeline construction in the third quarter of 2025. However, that has not happened.

"Of course they want to start construction as soon as possible," said Alex Domb of Food & Water Watch, which is against the pipeline. "But this has not been approved by New York state, and that's the first approval they need to get. Once the New York Department of Environmental Conservation makes a decision on this, then New Jersey (the NJ Department of Environmental Protection) will make a decision. Trump is pushing the pipeline very hard right now. They are trying to ram this through."

Protest against pipeline Tuesday in Middletown

On Tuesday, Food & Water Watch will hold a protest against the proposed pipeline construction. The protest rally will be held from 4-6 p.m. at Bayshore Waterfront Park in Middletown.

"We chose that location because it can accommodate a lot of people," said Domb. "Everyone along Raritan Bay will be affected by this pipeline. The pipeline will not simply be lying on the bottom of Raritan Bay; it will be buried, so construction to bury it would disturb the bay floor. New York state previously rejected this because of water quality issues; there are toxic sediments, such as mercury, on the seabed in Raritan Bay and those sediments will be dredged up. There will be effects to water quality and the general health of the bay, so Middletown won't be immune to the impacts of this, unfortunately."

On Wednesday, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection will hold its only public hearing on the NESE pipeline. The virtual hearing will be held from 6-9 p.m. Here is the link to attend or speak at the virtual hearing and learn more about the NESE pipeline.

Trump, Gov. Hochul made a deal to allow natural gas pipeline, wind farm to both move forward

Previously, the NY Department of Environmental Conservation rejected the NESE pipeline three times, on the grounds that it would harm water quality in New York harbor.

But that was before President Trump got back in office. Trump said he and New York Gov. Kathy Hochul made a series of deals: That she would approve the natural gas pipeline if Trump allowed Empire Wind farm (currently being built 19 miles off Long Branch) to proceed.

(Trump said Hochul "caved" on the NESE and other pipelines, something she disputes.)

In April, the Trump administration halted all construction on Empire Wind. But then just one month later, Trump abruptly reversed course and lifted the stop-work order. Construction on Empire Wind is now well underway. As of mid-August, Empire Wind said it was 40 percent complete as it installs 54 monopiles into the ocean floor off Long Branch (see photos of how it looks).

Empire Wind is the only Jersey Shore wind farm to begin construction. All other wind farms proposed off the Jersey Shore collapsed due to lack of financing. Empire Wind is owned by Norwegian renewable energy company Equinor, of which the Kingdom of Norway is a majority owner.

Also, Equinor's CEO told the Financial Times in June the natural gas "deal" helped save Empire Wind.

Just 10 days after Empire Wind was allowed to resume construction, Williams submitted new applications to New York state to get NESE approved, New York Focus reported, plus the Constitution Pipeline, an even bigger natural gas pipeline that would carry fracked natural gas from Pennsylvania to New England.

Prior:

Trump Admin. Lifts Stop-Work Order, Allows Empire Wind Farm Off NJ To Proceed (May)

Wind Farm 19 Miles Off Long Branch Is '40 Percent Complete,' Company Says (August)