FERC Approves $5.2B Gas Pipeline Expansion Through Southern States

Federal regulators have given the green light to two major natural gas pipeline expansions in the southern United States. The $1.7 billion Mississippi Crossing Project and the $3.5 billion South System Expansion 4 are expected to boost energy reliability and generate approximately 750 temporary construction jobs along their routes.

The pipelines will connect near Butler, Alabama, enabling additional natural gas supplies to reach pipeline networks that serve Georgia. Over 90% of the project's capacity has been presold under contracts with commercial users and utilities, according to Kinder Morgan, the project developer.

Critics argue that local utility customers along the pipelines' path will unfairly bear the long-term financial and environmental burdens of an expansion aimed primarily at supplying AI data centers and other commercial facilities.