Freeport McMoRan Energy L.L.C. Main Pass Energy Hub Liquefied Natural Gas Deepwater Port License Application Amendment; Final Public Hearings, Environmental Assessment and Draft Finding of No Significant Impact

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The Maritime Administration (MARAD) and U.S. Coast Guard announce the availability of the Environmental Assessment (EA) and Draft Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) on the Main Pass Energy Hub (MPEH) Deepwater Port Amended License Application. We are also announcing the dates and locations of public hearings for input regarding the approval or denial of the license application. The application and the amendment describe a project that would be located in the Gulf of Mexico in Main Pass Lease Block 299 (MP 299), approximately 16 miles southeast of Venice, Louisiana. Draft and final Environmental Impact Statements (EIS) evaluating the original application were published on June 17, 2005 and March 14, 2006, respectively. The Main Pass Energy Hub Deepwater Port License Application originally proposed the use of "open-loop" open rack vaporization (ORV). In the amended application, the applicant is proposing a "closed-loop" system using submerged combustion vaporization with selective catalytic reduction (SCV/SCR). Though similar, a more generic SCV/SCR system was analyzed in detail in the Final EIS (FEIS) as an alternative. The amended application provides expanded and refined des