Eminent Domain
If the Commission approves the project and no agreement with the landowner is reached, the company may acquire the easement under eminent domain (a right given to the company by statute to take private land for Commission-authorized use) with a court determining compensation.
The Commissions Role In Eminent Domain
A FERC certificate is not required in order for a company to negotiate the acquisition of a storage lease or easement. However, if FERC has issued a certificate approving the creation of a new storage field (or expansion of an existing field), that indicates that the agency has concluded that the storage field is needed and is in the public interest. In accordance with the Natural GasAct (a law passed by the United States Congress in 1938), the FERC certificate gives the company the right to ask a state or federal court to award the needed property rights to the company where voluntary good faith negotiation has failed.
The Process of Eminent Domain
If the owner of the property/mineral rights and the company do not reach an agreement, the company can go to court to obtain the necessary rights through eminent domain. In such cases, the court will determine the amount that the company must pay to the owner of these rights. Similarly, if the storage field operations affect the surface property through construction of facilities or by reserving access rights, the company must also reach an agreement with the owner of the surface rights or go to court to obtain any necessary property rights through eminent domain. The court will determine the amount that the company must pay the owner of the surface rights. The state or federal court procedure is known as condemnation (or the exercise of eminent domain).
Can companies use the ground under my property without paying for it?
A company that owns/operates a storage field cannot use the underground portion of storage facilities without either owning mineral rights or having some form of agreement with the owner of the mineral rights. Compensation for that use will come as a result of the property/mineral rights conveyed to the company by the current owner or attached to the deed from a previous property owner. Those property/mineral rights, depending on the facts of the particular situation, will most likely be in the form of a storage lease or an easement agreement.
Can the company place more than one pipeline on my property?
Can the pipeline and the easement be used for anything other than natural gas?A: The Commission grants a certificate and states that eminent domain may only be used for the proposed pipeline and related facilities in the exact location described and only for the transportation of natural gas. If the company wishes to install another natural gas pipeline under Commission jurisdiction, it must obtain additional approval from the Commission. Other utilities may wish to use an adjacent or overlapping easement, but they would have to obtain approval from you or from another permitting authority that can grant eminent domain (usually the state). Of course, you may agree to other uses.
Quick Links
Podcast Title
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros
The Commissions Role In Eminent Domain
A FERC certificate is not required in order for a company to negotiate the acquisition of a storage lease or easement. However, if FERC has issued a certificate approving the creation of a new storage field (or expansion of an existing field), that indicates that the agency has concluded that the storage field is needed and is in the public interest. In accordance with the Natural GasAct (a law passed by the United States Congress in 1938), the FERC certificate gives the company the right to ask a state or federal court to award the needed property rights to the company where voluntary good faith negotiation has failed.
The Process of Eminent Domain
If the owner of the property/mineral rights and the company do not reach an agreement, the company can go to court to obtain the necessary rights through eminent domain. In such cases, the court will determine the amount that the company must pay to the owner of these rights. Similarly, if the storage field operations affect the surface property through construction of facilities or by reserving access rights, the company must also reach an agreement with the owner of the surface rights or go to court to obtain any necessary property rights through eminent domain. The court will determine the amount that the company must pay the owner of the surface rights. The state or federal court procedure is known as condemnation (or the exercise of eminent domain).
Can companies use the ground under my property without paying for it?
A company that owns/operates a storage field cannot use the underground portion of storage facilities without either owning mineral rights or having some form of agreement with the owner of the mineral rights. Compensation for that use will come as a result of the property/mineral rights conveyed to the company by the current owner or attached to the deed from a previous property owner. Those property/mineral rights, depending on the facts of the particular situation, will most likely be in the form of a storage lease or an easement agreement.
Can the company place more than one pipeline on my property?
Can the pipeline and the easement be used for anything other than natural gas?A: The Commission grants a certificate and states that eminent domain may only be used for the proposed pipeline and related facilities in the exact location described and only for the transportation of natural gas. If the company wishes to install another natural gas pipeline under Commission jurisdiction, it must obtain additional approval from the Commission. Other utilities may wish to use an adjacent or overlapping easement, but they would have to obtain approval from you or from another permitting authority that can grant eminent domain (usually the state). Of course, you may agree to other uses.
