PSC approves huge natural gas processing plant

North Dakota utility regulators on Friday approved a Canadian company’s large-scale project to convert natural gas into higher-value products such as diesel fuel and lubricants.

Cerilon will build the $3.2 billion gas-to-liquids plant near Trenton, west of Williston in Williams County.

The North Dakota Public Service Commission is requiring that Cerilon file a construction management plan that would address traffic around the plant. The three-person commission approved the siting application unanimously Friday.

Traffic was a main concern of residents when the commission held a public hearing on the project in Williston in June.

Rochelle Harding, director of sustainability and engagement for Alberta-based Cerilon, said a traffic plan should be available in mid- to late-2025 with construction beginning in 2026.

Construction is expected to take about two years with about 2,000 workers on site at its peak.

Harding said Cerilon will bus workers onto the construction site as one way to cut down on the vehicle traffic.

“We’re absolutely committed to working with members of this community as we continue to develop the project,” Harding said.

The state Department of Transportation plans to add turn lanes at a key intersection on State Highway 1804 near the plant.

Harding said the company hopes to start construction on a second phase of the plant about two years after the first phase is operational. Phase two would be similar in scale to the initial construction.

Harding said Cerilon is still working on air and water discharge permits but expects to have those approved by the North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality by the end of the year.

Cerilon also plans to capture carbon emissions from the gas-to-liquid plant. The carbon dioxide would be sent through a pipeline to a sequestration site.

Harding said the gas-to-liquids plant can operate without carbon capture.

In addition to producing liquid products, the plant will produce more electricity than it will use and will help supply power to the region.

According to the company’s application with the PSC, the plant’s liquid products include low sulfur diesel; base oils, a component of premium lubricants such as synthetic motor oil, and naphtha, which can be sold to refineries or chemical plants for further processing or be used to dilute crude oil.

The project has received numerous financial incentives from state and local governments.

North Dakota has an abundance of natural gas, a byproduct of the state’s oil industry.

“This project is an important part of getting some value out of that gas,” Harding said.