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Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey asked the Trump administration on October 1, 2026, to move faster on federal reviews and permits for Enbridge’s proposed Project RARE gas pipeline expansion. The proposal is under FERC review and has not been approved. Healey says a faster process should preserve environmental review and meaningful engagement with affected communities.

Why is Healey asking the federal government to expedite review?

In a letter to U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright, Healey urged federal agencies to set clear schedules, coordinate their work, and provide enough resources to keep the review on track. She said the state expects the project to enter service in 2028 and that two 10-year firm transportation agreements approved by the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities are scheduled to begin November 1, 2029. Those are the state’s stated timelines, not a guarantee that the project will be approved or meet them.

Healey argues that delays could put expected customer benefits at risk. Her request was addressed to Wright and called on the Trump administration to act; it was not a direct request to FERC. FERC is conducting the environmental review. Healey also wrote, “Thorough and timely review are not competing goals,” emphasizing that speed should not come at the expense of environmental review or meaningful community engagement. Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs announcement; Healey’s letter to Energy Secretary Chris Wright.

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What is Project RARE?

Project RARE—Reliable Affordable Resilient Enhancement—is Enbridge’s proposed expansion of the Algonquin gas transmission system. FERC lists it as the Algonquin Gas Transmission, LLC AGT Enhancement Project, docket PF26-7-000.

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The project descriptions use different measures of added capacity and construction scope. They should be read as attributed descriptions, not as figures independently reconciled to one another:

Source What it describes
Healey’s letter Approximately 73,500 dekatherms per day of additional capacity.
WBUR, citing Enbridge Roughly 75 million cubic feet per day of added capacity; replacement of about eight miles of existing pipeline with wider pipe in Massachusetts and Rhode Island; a secondary pipeline segment in Rhode Island; and an upgrade at the Cromwell, Connecticut, compressor station.
FERC project page Approximately 13.5 miles of pipeline segments and associated facilities in Massachusetts and Rhode Island, plus compression upgrades at the existing Cromwell station.

Sources: Healey’s letter; WBUR’s report; FERC’s project page.

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Has FERC approved the pipeline expansion?

No. FERC accepted the project into its pre-filing environmental review process on February 24, 2026, and its project page says the proposal has not been approved. Pre-filing is a pre-application phase intended to identify environmental issues early. It includes opportunities for public comment and scoping. Healey’s October 1 letter says FERC had conducted public scoping by that date. FERC: AGT Enhancement Project.

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How much money could it save customers?

The Healey administration estimates that added gas supply could reduce reliance on higher-priced imported liquefied natural gas from the Everett LNG Terminal, producing about $40 million in direct annual savings for roughly 600,000 gas customers. That is a state projection, not a verified or realized saving. The cited sources do not establish what customers will ultimately save, or the project’s final costs. Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs.

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What are the reliability and climate arguments?

Eversource has said the capacity is important for winter demand and could reduce reliance on imported LNG. The utility’s spokesperson also cautioned that the project would not resolve the region’s affordability problem by itself. Climate advocates, meanwhile, worry that additional gas infrastructure could encourage continued gas use despite Massachusetts emissions goals. These are competing positions; the cited accounts do not establish the project’s eventual effects on reliability, customer costs, or emissions. WBUR’s report.

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Is Project RARE the same as Project Beacon?

No. Project Beacon is a separate Enbridge proposal. WBUR reported on October 1, 2026, that Beacon remained at an early development stage and had not been submitted for federal review. WBUR.

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