The developer of a major carbon dioxide pipeline system is asking South Dakota regulators to pause the clock on a key permit application in the state, a move quickly cheered by opponents.
In a filing Wednesday, attorneys for Summit Carbon Solutions said a new law has changed the company’s ability to do key survey work and current timelines are now “unrealistic.”
South Dakota statute requires the South Dakota Public Utilities Commission to render a decision within 12 months of receiving an initial application. Summit, which submitted an application in mid-November to the agency, has requested a suspension in the schedule, given how the new law complicates the company’s property access for surveys.
Last week, South Dakota Gov. Larry Rhoden (R) signed a bill that prohibits the use of eminent domain to build CO2 pipelines in South Dakota, disrupting plans by Iowa-based Summit to build almost 700 miles of pipeline across the state.
