WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Williams Cos said on Friday it appreciated U.S. President Donald Trump’s support for its cancelled Constitution natural gas pipeline project through New York, and that it was interested in dusting off the project under the right circumstances.
Trump met with New York Governor Kathy Hochul on Friday morning for talks that included potentially reviving the project, which Williams canceled in 2020 following opposition from politicians and environmentalists in New York.
Trump supports a wide expansion of energy production and infrastructure to achieve what he calls energy dominance.
“Williams appreciates President Trump’s commitment to addressing the Northeast’s natural gas supply constraints, which have led to some of the highest consumer energy prices in the country and the continued use of excessive amounts of higher-emitting fuel oil,” Williams said in an email to Reuters.
“We are interested in building the Constitution pipeline, provided there is sufficient customer demand and support from Northeast governors, including Governor Hochul, to mitigate the risk of costly permitting delays, court battles, and injunctions during construction.”
Williams said it was also hopeful for permitting reform in Congress to make it easier to advance projects.
Hochul’s office said the discussion with Trump covered several subjects, including energy policy and tariffs.
“While no formal agreements or decisions were reached, it was a productive conversation and we look forward to continuing the dialogue in the coming weeks,” spokesman Jerrel Harvey said.
The White House did not immediately comment.
The Constitution project would move up to 650 million cubic feet of natural gas per day from the Marcellus Shale in Pennsylvania to consumers in New York.
Trump’s tariff dispute with Canada risks spilling over into higher power prices for New York consumers.
The Canadian province of Ontario threatened earlier this week to impose a 25% surcharge on the electricity it sends into the state.
(Reporting by Trevor Hunnicutt; Writing by Richard Valdmanis; Editing by Nia Williams)
