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Page Number: 9

4 

PENNEAST PIPELINE CO. v. NEW JERSEY 

Opinion of the Court 

federal  eminent  domain  power,  the  1947  amendment  en-
sured that certificates of public convenience and necessity
could be given effect. 

B 

Petitioner PennEast Pipeline Co. is a joint venture owned 
by several energy companies.  In 2015, PennEast applied to 
FERC for a certificate of public convenience and necessity 
authorizing the construction of a 116-mile pipeline from Lu-
zerne  County,  Pennsylvania,  to  Mercer  County,  New  Jer-
sey.  FERC  published  notice  of  PennEast’s  application  in
the Federal Register, and subsequently received thousands 
of comments in writing and at public hearings.  FERC then 
issued  a  draft  environmental  impact  statement  for  the 
project,  which  yielded  thousands  of  additional  comments. 
PennEast  made  a  number  of  route  modifications  in  re-
sponse to the concerns commenters had raised. 

In January 2018, FERC granted PennEast a certificate of 
public  convenience  and  necessity.  FERC  later  denied  re-
hearing of this decision, and several parties, including re-
spondent New Jersey, petitioned for review in the D. C. Cir-
cuit.  The  D. C.  Circuit  has  held  those  proceedings  in
abeyance pending resolution of this case.

Weeks  after  FERC  granted  its  application,  PennEast 
filed various complaints in Federal District Court in New 
Jersey.  PennEast  sought  to  exercise  the  federal  eminent
domain power under §717f(h) to obtain rights-of-way along 
the pipeline route approved by FERC, and to establish just
compensation  for  affected  owners.    PennEast  also  sought 
preliminary  and  permanent  injunctive  relief  allowing  it 
take  immediate  possession  of  each  property  in  advance 
of  any  award  of  just  compensation.  As  relevant  here, 
PennEast sought to condemn two parcels in which New Jer-
sey asserts a possessory interest, and 40 parcels in which 
the State claims nonpossessory interests, such as conserva-
tion easements.  PennEast also sought to condemn parcels