Gas Pipeline Plan Would Cross 10 Tennessee Counties

SUMNER COUNTY, Tenn. — About 760 Tennessee property owners are now on the proposed path of a new interstate natural gas line, as Kinder Morgan moves ahead with early survey work for a project it calls the Southeast Connector.

Inside Tennessee the route covers roughly 150 miles. It would begin in Sumner County, run south through Macon, Trousdale and Smith counties, continue across DeKalb, Cannon, Warren and Coffee, then cross Franklin before ending at Marion County near Chattanooga. From there the line would keep going into Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina and Florida, for a full length of about 470 miles.

In Middle Tennessee the plan would tie the Sumner County end of the company’s Tennessee Natural Gas Pipeline to its Southern Natural Gas system just over the Marion County line in north Alabama. Franklin County has 40 of the affected owners, and Marion County has 65.

Letters have already gone out. Kinder Morgan is offering $500 to owners who sign a form permitting civil and environmental surveys, and federal landowner guidance says agreeing to a survey is not the same as granting permission to build.

The pipe would be 48 inches across, wider than the 42-inch ceiling typical of interstate lines, and could move as much as 2.6 billion cubic feet of gas a day, with room to grow to 3.5 billion. Compressor stations would be spaced every 40 to 50 miles.

The company has pegged its Middle Tennessee spending at $1.3 billion. It is not offering counties an upfront payment, but it estimates property tax revenue of $1.6 million for 13 miles of line in Franklin County and $1 million for 14 miles in Marion County.

The timeline runs several years. The company plans a pre-filing request with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission in the fourth quarter of 2026, a certificate application in the third quarter of 2027, construction starting late in 2028 and gas flowing by the fourth quarter of 2030. Easement purchases cannot begin until federal regulators approve an environmental impact statement and issue a certificate.

Tennessee has no statewide rule on how close a pipeline may run to homes; Memphis and Shelby County are the only local governments with a setback requirement. If an owner refuses an easement, the company can go to court under eminent domain. Opponents in the southern counties have organized to fight the project, while the company has said the region is underserved by natural gas and the line would expand natural gas capacity in growing communities.

For questions about the federal review, owners can call 866-208-3372, the line for the commission’s external affairs office.

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