By Avi Salzman and Laura Sanicola

President Donald Trump plans to greenlight construction of the controversial Constitution natural gas pipeline into New York, claiming it can reduce electricity costs for New Yorkers and New Englanders by up to 70%. But the CEO of the principal company behind the pipeline said on Tuesday that he isn't willing to undertake the project even with the president's blessing, as long as the region's governors oppose it.

"We're not gonna go putting our neck out until they invite us with the red carpet rolled out," said Alan Armstrong, CEO of pipeline giant Williams Cos., in an interview with Barron's on the sidelines of the CERAWeek conference in Houston.

Armstrong said that Williams lost hundreds of millions of dollars trying to build two failed pipelines into the Northeast over the past decade. One was the Constitution Pipeline, which would stretch 124 miles from the gas fields of Pennsylvania to New York, near Albany. From there, the gas would connect to other pipelines that could take it into New England. That project died in 2020 after New York denied the company water quality permits.

Trump had told reporters in the Oval Office last month that he wants the Constitution pipeline built quickly, to lower electricity prices in the Northeast.

"We are going to get this done, and once we start construction, we're looking at anywhere from nine to 12 months, if you can believe it," Trump said.

Trump even said that the federal government could use eminent domain to push the pipeline through the approval process. "We'll do that if we have to, but hopefully we won't have to do that," he said. He has referenced building pipelines in the Northeast in some of his energy executive orders. Interstate pipelines are regulated by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), though they sometimes also need local environmental permits.

The Trump administration didn't immediately respond to a request for comment on Armstrong's remarks.

Power prices are higher in the Northeast than in most of the country for a variety of reasons, including a lack of pipelines to bring natural gas into the region from low-cost production areas like Pennsylvania. New England relies heavily on natural gas but doesn't produce much of its own supplies. During cold snaps, the region is sometimes forced to import expensive liquefied natural gas and heating oil from other countries.

Pipeline companies have considered projects in the Northeast for years -- given the large population and high energy demands -- but have been stymied in their efforts to get pipelines built. Environmental groups say that building new infrastructure will only lock in fossil fuel use for decades, adding to the climate crisis. Governors in Northeastern states have largely opposed new pipelines, instead focusing on investing in renewable power generation from sources like offshore wind.

Armstrong says he doesn't want to deal with that regulatory environment again.

"We're not going to until the governors up there, collectively, including [New York Gov. Kathy] Hochul, say they're going to come right out and be supportive of getting the infrastructure built," Armstrong said. "That they're going to eliminate natural gas bans in their markets. Until that stuff happens we're not going to put capital at risk into those markets."

Williams' pipelines handle about one-third of the country's natural gas, and the company is benefiting from a surge in natural gas demand to supply power plants for data centers and other electricity users. Armstrong said that the Northeast has missed out on the data center boom because of its high power prices and lack of pipelines.

"We have so much more demand for gas to the south -- so many more projects -- that we're not gonna stick our neck out" to try to invest in the Northeast, he said.

Write to Avi Salzman at avi.salzman@barrons.com and Laura Sanicola at laura.sanicola@barrons.com

This content was created by Barron's, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. Barron's is published independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.

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March 11, 2025 18:49 ET (22:49 GMT)

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