Public Notice: Public Notice: Draft Title V Federal Operating Permit Renewal, El Paso Natural Gas Company (EPNG) LLC., Laguna Compressor Station, Permit No. R6FOP-NM-04-R3-2026
Summary
The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) provides notice of and requests public comments on a draft Clean Air Act (CAA) Part 71, title V federal operating permit renewal proposed for the EPNG Laguna Compressor Station (Facility). If finalized, the proposed title V permit renewal would regulate air pollutant emissions associated with operation of the facility.
Background: The EPNG Laguna Compressor Station is an existing facility that has been in operation since 1958 and is grandfathered under the CAA Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) permit rules. The Facility receives natural gas through an inlet line which passes through an inlet separator and is pressurized to the natural gas retail pipeline that serves the Pueblos.
The Laguna Compressor Station is approximately 5 miles southeast of Laguna, New Mexico in Cibola County. The project is generally positioned at: Latitude 34° 59’ 42” N and Longitude 107° 18’ 51” W.
Proposed title V Federal Operating Permit Renewal: EPNG’s renewal application proposes no changes to operations at the existing facility, other than installation of a new Caterpillar 688 horsepower, natural gas fired spark ignition (SI) 4-stroke lean burn (4SLB) emergency generator reciprocating internal combustion engine (RICE). This emergency generator (AUX A-03) will serve as a backup power source only to be used during power outage and will replace the two (2) existing full-time generators, currently permitted as units AUX-01 and AUX-02. The calculated PTE for this emergency generator engine used 500 hours/year for hours of operation. The emergency generator engine will replace the two existing full-time generators, currently permitted as units AUX-01 and AUX-02. The calculated PTE for these full-time generator engines used 8760 hours/year for hours of operation. The two (2) auxiliary Ingersoll-Rand engines are retired on-site, with the fuel line being disconnected. The renewal application requests, units AUX A-01 and AUX A-02 be removed from the Facility’s Part 71 renewal permit and unit AUX A-03 will be added. Therefore, AUX A-01 and AUX A-02 will no longer be authorized to operate at the Facility. EPNG has also proposed the removal the diesel tank indicated as an insignificant emissions unit (Insig16) in the current Part 71 permit. The Facility station no longer stores any diesel or fuel oil; EPNG only handles new lube oil or used oil. EPNG submitted a Facility’s potential to emit (PTE) to include:
Change in Potential to Emit in Tons per Year (tpy)
| Pollutants | Current Permit PTE | Renewal Permit PTE |
|---|---|---|
| Nitrogen Oxides (NOx) | 2121.6 tpy | 1834.6 tpy |
| Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) | 93.2 tpy | 81.3 tpy |
| Sulphur Dioxide (SO2) | 7.0 tpy | 6 .0 tpy |
Particulate Matter 10 microns or less (PM10) | 22.4 tpy | 21.0 tpy |
Particulate Matter 2.5 microns or less (PM2.5) | 22.4 tpy | 21.0 tpy |
| Carbon Monoxide (CO) | 722.1 tpy | 424.7 tpy |
| Hazardous Air Pollutant (HAP) | 36.1 tpy | 34.9 tpy |
The title V federal operating permit renewal will authorize continued operation of the EPNG Laguna Compressor Station as represented in the supporting administrative record.
Permit Documents: Starting on January 14, 2026, members of the public may review EPA’s administrative record for the Facility’s Title V operating permit renewal action. The administrative record includes the proposed draft permit renewal, the statement of basis for the proposed permit renewal, the permit renewal application, and additional data and supporting documentation for the permit renewal action. Comments received from the public, other government agencies, and the applicant during the public comment period will also become part of the administrative record for the Facility’s Title V renewal permit action. All documents contained in the Administrative Record may be viewed online by visiting https://www.regulations.gov. Once at the Regulations.gov website, search and view the permit documents by entering the docket number EPA-R06-OAR-2025-0121 into the search box. Please submit comments on the proposed permit at the following link: https://www.regulations.gov/commenton/EPA-R06-OAR-2025-0121-0001.
Public Hearing: You have the right to request a public hearing on the proposed permit action. Any request for a public hearing must be received by EPA no later than January 28, 2026, and the request must state the nature of the issues proposed to be raised in the hearing for the permit action. Any request for a public hearing must be provided to EPA by posting a request on the Regulations.gov website listed above under Docket ID EPA-R06-OAR-2025-0121. Please note attendance/participation at a public hearing is not required in order to submit written comments. To request a public hearing, please leave your comment to request a public hearing at this link: https://www.regulations.gov/commenton/EPA-R06-OAR-2025-0121-0003.
If EPA determines that there is significant public interest in the permit action, a virtual public hearing will be held on February 25, 2026 for the virtual public hearing on our public notice website at https://www.epa.gov/publicnotices/notices-search?f%5B0%5D=location%3ANew%20Mexico .
Due to the logistics involved in planning a virtual meeting, a pre-registration period will be necessary and will last from February 16, 2026, until February 20, 2026. For participants not able to pre-register, EPA will allow time for individuals attending and wanting to speak to participate, at the end of the meeting as participants indicate their interest to speak, and as time allows. EPA will send verification by e-mail to all participants who pre-register to inform them of the order of speakers registered and approximate times for speakers to provide their verbal comments during the public hearing.
If a public hearing is held, the public comment period shall automatically be extended to the close of the public hearing date. EPA retains the right to cancel the scheduled virtual public hearing if no request for a public hearing is received by January 28, 2026, or if EPA determines that there is not a significant interest. If EPA decides to cancel the public hearing, notification of the cancellation will be posted in the docket by February 2, 2026, on the Regulations.gov website listed above and also on EPA’s website at https://www.epa.gov/publicnotices/notices-search?f%5B0%5D=location%3ANew%20Mexico .
Final Determination: A final decision to issue or to deny a permit shall be made after all comments have been considered. Notice of the final decision shall be sent to each person who has submitted comments or requested notice of the final permit decision, provided the EPA has adequate contact information.
Applicants or Respondents
El Paso Natural Gas Company, LLC.,(EPNG) Laguna Compressor Station7445 Pan American Freeway, Ste 202
Albuquerque, NM 87109
United States