On Friday January 11, 2019, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals declined Dominion’s request to either narrow the scope of the Court’s December stay of Atlantic Coast Pipeline construction or to expedite the hearing on the case involving of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Biological Opinion and Incidental Take Statement. The oral arguments before the Court are scheduled for March 2019, and an opinion would likely not be issued until some weeks thereafter. Because of the timing of the court case, the legal window will have closed for the tree felling Dominion says is necessary for construction, thus delaying construction for as much as a year. An article in the Charlotte Business Journal on January 15, 2019, says, “Because of requirements in its Federal Energy Regulatory Commission license, the pipeline could be prevented from clearing timber for construction of the pipeline until November, even if the court rules in its favor after the hearing that starts March 19. If that were to happen, the delays could add up to a $1 billion cost increase.”

That’s a $1 billion increase beyond the already projected $7 billion. Dominion’s original cost estimate for the ACP was $4.5-5 billion, and the original in-service date was late 2018. Cost estimates are now $8 billion, with an in-service date for the proposed project of mid-2021.