Deepwater Port License Application: Liberty Natural Gas LLC, Port Ambrose Deepwater Port; Withdrawal of Application and Termination of Federal Application Review Process

The Maritime Administration (MARAD) announces the termination of the Liberty Natural Gas LLC (Liberty) Port Ambrose Deepwater Port License Application and all related Federal processing activities required by applicable provisions of the Deepwater Port Act of 1974, as amended (Act). On September 28, 2015, Liberty submitted to MARAD and the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) an application under the Act for a license and all Federal authorizations required to own, construct, and operate a deepwater port for the importation of liquefied natural gas (LNG) into the United States. The deepwater port, known as Port Ambrose, was proposed to be located in the offshore waters of New York and New Jersey, in the New York Bight. On June 14, 2013, MARAD and USCG deemed the application complete, designated New York and New Jersey as adjacent coastal states (ACS) and commenced the Federal application review process required under the Act. This process also included a comprehensive environmental assessment, public meetings and coordination of the application review process with relevant Federal and State agencies. Upon completion of the environmental review process required by the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the final public licensing hearings, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo of the State of New York, notified the Maritime Administration, by letter dated November 12, 2015, of his disapproval of the Liberty Port Ambrose deepwater port project. Governor Cuomo's disapproval was issued in accordance with the provisions outlined in 33 U.S.C. Section 1508(c)(8) which state, the Secretary (or Maritime Administrator by delegated authority) may issue a deepwater port license only if the Governor of the ACS approves or is presumed to approve, issuance of the license. In light of Governor Cuomo's disapproval of the application, Liberty notified MARAD, by letter dated November 18, 2015, of its withdrawal of the Port Ambrose license application from the Federal review process. As a consequence of Liberty's withdrawal of its application, the Federal application review process and all related Federal processing activities were terminated on November 18, 2015. This Federal Register Notice shall serve as official announcement to the public that the Federal review and processing of the Liberty Port Ambrose deepwater port license application is terminated.