Court Denies Stay, Allows MVP Southgate Pipeline Construction to Move Forward

A federal appeals court denied motions to halt water permits for the MVP Southgate pipeline, allowing construction to proceed while legal challenges continue.

(P&GJ) — The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit has denied motions to stay water quality certifications for the Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) Southgate project, allowing construction activities to move forward while legal challenges continue.

The rulings apply to Clean Water Act Section 401 certifications issued by regulators in Virginia and North Carolina, which are required for the project to proceed with construction across streams and wetlands.

The court had previously issued temporary administrative stays in March to maintain the status quo while it considered the motions. With the denial of those requests, the permits remain in effect during the ongoing judicial review.

The MVP Southgate project involves construction of a 31.3-mile, 30-inch-diameter natural gas pipeline extending from Pittsylvania County, Virginia, into Rockingham County, North Carolina, with the majority of the route located in Virginia.

The pipeline is an extension of the broader Mountain Valley Pipeline system and is intended to transport natural gas to markets in the southeastern United States.

Separate legal challenges to the project’s federal authorization are ongoing in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit.

State regulators issued the water quality certifications in late 2025 and early 2026, which were necessary for the project to secure federal permits related to construction in regulated waterways.