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SACRAMENTO (AP)— Cal ifornia may lack time to build an offshore liquefied natural gas terminal to prevent serious shortages of natural gas, the head of the state Public Utilities Commission says. Robert Batinovich also told an Assemblyee that California and rest of the nation sooner or later will be on “‘an LNG economy — it’s just a matter of time.” Based on forecasts of Califor nia natural gas needs and con struction time, ‘‘] don’t hold much hope we can go off shore,”’ said Batinovich. He added, however, that by September 1978, when the PUC would rule under proposed legislation, more would be known about gas supplies and he might reach a different con clusion. The Oxnard City Council ap proved this week an en vironmental impact report for an onshore LNG terminal pro of for Ormond Beach. A iring on a special-use permit for the facility is scheduled before the Planning Commis sion next month. , Batinovich also said LNG, now far more expensive than domestic natural gas, will be the cheapest gas available when it arrives in the 1980s. It will be expensive, but when asked how much it would raise consumer rates, he said: “We don’t talk costs (to con sumers). What we talk about is how much gas and at what cost”’ to bring it to California. Batinovich, a close adviser to Gov. Edmund Brown Jr., cri ticized a bill by Assemblyman Terry Goggin, D-San Ber nardino, that would have the Coastal Commission decide where a terminal could be built onshore and the PUC deter mine whether the first facilit would be built offshore, if at all. He said the legislature should be forthright and specify Point Conception as an onshore site, since the Goggin bill, in effect, leaves Point Conception or off shore as the only alternatives. The utilities’ primary sites, Los Angeles Harbor and Ox nard, are ruled out by Goggin's bill because of allon den sity. His bill would not allow an onshore terminal unless the PUC finds that an offshore site can’t be built to meet critical gas shortages that the utilities say will strike in 1980-81. Assembly Resources, Land Use and Energy Commit tee, after more than five hours of testimony, set a special hear ing for a vote on the bill next Tuesday. Goggin said a compromise (See LNG, Page 2) ELM HEELS INTERIOR SECRETARY SPEAKS IN COUNTY Cecil Andrus says he hopes for decision by next week on oil processing facility in Santa Barbara.
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Oxnard Press Courier
Oxnard, California, US
Fri, Jun 17, 1977
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