Agency Milestone Date of 11/17/2025 for Publish Final ITA Regulations in Federal Register (LOA Only) (Agency Action) has passed by 1 business days
Description:
The Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) prohibits "take" of marine mammals with certain exceptions. An incidental take authorization, which may be issued provided certain findings are made, allows for the "take" of marine mammals provided the authorized entity abides by mitigation and monitoring measures and take limits established in the authorization. The project proponent has communicated that the activity may result in the incidental “take" of marine mammals and has expressed plans to submit a request for an MMPA incidental take authorization. Based on initial feedback from the applicant, we anticipate the incidental take authorization under the MMPA for this project will be a rule and subsequent letter of authorization (LOA).
Milestones:
The initial LOA application should be submitted at least 6 months prior to the milestone for NMFS to determine the application complete to allow for time to coordinate any needed revisions. Further, while initial LOA applications that are incomplete (containing placeholders for information to be filled in later) may be submitted for early coordination purposes, these incomplete iterations are not sufficient for purposes of meeting this milestone. This milestone date is the date that a LOA application containing all needed information is submitted.
NOAA’s ability to meet this schedule is contingent upon receipt of information required to deem the application adequate and complete.
NOAA’s ability to meet this schedule is contingent upon receipt of adequate and complete application information.
NOAA’s ability to meet this schedule is contingent upon receipt of adequate and complete application information and the extent and nature of comments received on the Notice of Receipt (NOR). Additionally, this milestone must occur either concurrently with publication of the DEIS, or after the publication of the DEIS, to avoid preceding the lead agency’s description of the proposed activity to the public. FERC finalized an EIS on March 6, 2020 on which NOAA was a cooperating agency. NOAA adopted the EIS on February 16, 2021.
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Non-conformance Explanation:On November 5, 2025, the White House's Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) provided DOC a determination that the final rule is "significant" (per EO 12866), which necessitates interagency review. At the proposed rule stage, OIRA deemed the rule not significant. OIRA anticipates concluding interagency review by December 5, 2025. Therefore, the previous milestone for issuance of the final rule is pushed to December 17, 2025, while the final MMPA milestone (ITA Decision Rendered) of December 17, 2025 is unchanged due to anticipated waiver of the 30-day cooling-off period between issuance of the final rule and LOA.
This milestone is a precursor to the Incidental Take Authorization, which is provided in the Letter of Authorization (LOA). NOAA Fisheries’ ability to meet this schedule is contingent upon receipt of required information from the applicant, the extent and nature of public comments received on the proposed ITA, and the ability of NOAA Fisheries to make the findings required by the MMPA. It is also dependent upon completion of NEPA (i.e., signature of ROD or FONSI), and the completion of the ESA section 7 consultation.
This milestone is the date of the issuance of the Authorization (LOA) for incidental take of marine mammals. There is a 30-day waiting period from publishing the Final ITA regulations in the FR until the LOA can be issued. Therefore, this milestone is dependent on the publication of the incidental take regulations in the FR.
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Non-conformance Explanation:On November 5, 2025, the White House's Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) provided DOC a determination that the final rule is "significant" (per EO 12866), which necessitates interagency review. At the proposed rule stage, OIRA deemed the rule not significant. OIRA anticipates concluding interagency review by December 5, 2025. Therefore, the previous milestone for issuance of the final rule is pushed to December 17, 2025, while the final MMPA milestone (ITA Decision Rendered) of December 17, 2025 is unchanged due to anticipated waiver of the 30-day cooling-off period between issuance of the final rule and LOA.
This milestone is a precursor to the Incidental Take Authorization, which is provided in the Letter of Authorization (LOA). NOAA Fisheries’ ability to meet this schedule is contingent upon receipt of required information from the applicant, the extent and nature of public comments received on the proposed ITA, and the ability of NOAA Fisheries to make the findings required by the MMPA. It is also dependent upon completion of NEPA (i.e., signature of ROD or FONSI), and the completion of the ESA section 7 consultation.
PROJECT WEBSITE: http://alaska-lng.com/
All dates below are specific to the schedule of the Environmental Review and Permitting processes for this project.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW AND PERMITTING STATUS
IN PROGRESS
ESTIMATED COMPLETION DATE OF ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW AND PERMITTING
12/10/2025
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW AND PERMITTING PROCESSES
COMPLETED
SECTOR
Pipelines
CATEGORY
Project Category
FAST-41 Covered Projects
LEAD AGENCY
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
View FAST-41 Postings by Agencies
Other Agencies with Actions or Authorizations:
Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Department of Homeland Security, US Coast Guard
Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management
Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service
Department of the Army, US Army Corps of Engineers - Regulatory
Department of Energy, Office of Fossil Energy
Department of the Interior, National Park Service
Department of Energy
Description:
The proposed Alaska LNG Project is comprised of the following integrated and interdependent facilities: an LNG terminal in Southcentral Alaska designed to produce up to 20 million metric tons per annum of LNG; an approximately 807-mile, 42-inch diameter gas pipeline; a gas treatment plant (GTP) within the Prudhoe Bay Unit (PBU) on the North Slope; an approximately 1-mile, 60-inch diameter gas transmission line connecting the GTP to the PBU gas production facility; and an approximately 63-mile, 32-inch diameter gas transmission line connecting the GTP to the Point Thomson gas production facility. The mainline of the Alaska LNG Project would traverse over 800 miles from the GTP on the North Slope of Alaska through several boroughs before it crosses Cook Inlet and connects with the liquefaction plant and marine terminal in Nikiski, Alaska.
The project was initially determined to be a FAST-41 covered project in 2017. As represented in the permitting timetable, the federal environmental review and authorization process for the project was originally completed in 2020, and the project was marked as complete on the Permitting Dashboard. After the Department of Energy (DOE) granted a request for rehearing of a final order in 2021, the project was reopened on the Permitting Dashboard to include DOE’s preparation of a supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). Following the issuance of the supplemental EIS, DOE issued an updated order, and the project was marked as complete on the Permitting Dashboard in 2023.
On February 26, 2025, the project sponsor submitted a notice seeking to reinitiate FAST-41 coverage for updated Biological Opinions (under the Endangered Species Act) and renewed authorizations that are needed for the project. On March 12, 2025, it was determined that the project continues to qualify for FAST-41 coverage. Corresponding updates to the permitting timetable were posted on May 9, 2025.
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Non-conformance Explanation:On November 5, 2025, the White House's Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) provided DOC a determination that the final rule is "significant" (per EO 12866), which necessitates interagency review. At the proposed rule stage, OIRA deemed the rule not significant. OIRA anticipates concluding interagency review by December 5, 2025. Therefore, the previous milestone for issuance of the final rule is pushed to December 17, 2025, while the final MMPA milestone (ITA Decision Rendered) of December 17, 2025 is unchanged due to anticipated waiver of the 30-day cooling-off period between issuance of the final rule and LOA.
This milestone is a precursor to the Incidental Take Authorization, which is provided in the Letter of Authorization (LOA). NOAA Fisheries’ ability to meet this schedule is contingent upon receipt of required information from the applicant, the extent and nature of public comments received on the proposed ITA, and the ability of NOAA Fisheries to make the findings required by the MMPA. It is also dependent upon completion of NEPA (i.e., signature of ROD or FONSI), and the completion of the ESA section 7 consultation.