Federal Judge Orders New Fortress to Open Puerto Rico LNG Terminal to Alternative Suppliers Breaking News · Puerto Rico · Federal Court · Electric Grid · LNG Supply · New Fortress Energy · Public Spending · Accountability · DINA Analysis By DINA Puerto Rico Energy, Courts & Public Accountability Desk Primary-record reporting, grid-reliability accountability, public-spending analysis and fact/allegation separation Democracy Independent News Association (DINA) Published: 2026-10-31 Original: https://www.dinanews247.press/articles/puerto-rico-new-fortress-tro-october-31 The LNG aboard the Amur River was exhausted early Saturday and San Juan Units 5 and 6 returned to more expensive diesel, El Nuevo Día reports, as the government pursues an alternative supplier under a 14-day federal order. Breaking news · Puerto Rico · Federal court · Electric grid · LNG supply · New Fortress Energy · Public spending · Accountability · DINA analysis Updated November 1, 2026, 3:13 a.m. ET: El Nuevo Día reports that the LNG aboard the Amur River was exhausted early Saturday, the vessel left the terminal and San Juan Units 5 and 6 were generating with diesel. The government expects to pursue an alternative-supply agreement early in the week, but DINA has not located a new operator filing independently confirming the depletion time, current fuel balance or a signed replacement contract. SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — Puerto Rico's emergency LNG dispute has moved from a projected shortage to reported fuel depletion. A federal judge has ordered NFEnergía LLC, a New Fortress Energy subsidiary, to facilitate access to its San Juan liquefied-natural-gas facilities for alternative suppliers, while the territory's government pursues a replacement arrangement and two major generating units operate on more expensive diesel, according to credible local reporting. U.S. District Judge Pedro A. Delgado-Hernández granted the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority, or PREPA, a 14-day temporary restraining order on Friday. The order requires NFEnergía to disclose fuel-inventory and replacement-vessel information within 24 hours, identify facilities available for third-party deliveries and provide operating procedures and technical requirements within 72 hours. The court also barred NFEnergía from taking steps that would prevent or delay alternative LNG deliveries or conditioning third-party access on payment of disputed invoices. The order is temporary and does not finally decide PREPA's breach-of-contract allegations. Confirmed: The federal docket records a temporary restraining order in case 3:26-cv-01423, and the order imposes 24-hour and 72-hour disclosure and access requirements. Credibly reported: El Nuevo Día reports that the Amur River inventory was exhausted early Saturday, the vessel departed and San Juan Units 5 and 6 were using diesel. Alleged: PREPA says NFEnergía repeatedly failed to deliver contracted gas, withheld required information and resisted the contract's alternative-supply mechanism. Not confirmed by a new public operator filing: the exact depletion time, present unit output, the identity and terms of an alternative supplier, and whether NFE has fully complied with the court's deadlines. Reported depletion puts the court order to an immediate test El Nuevo Día reported at 5:24 p.m. Saturday that the LNG aboard the Amur River had been exhausted early that morning and that the vessel had left the terminal. The report said San Juan Units 5 and 6 were generating with diesel at a fuel cost exceeding 23 cents per kilowatt-hour. The newspaper also reported that senior executives from interested suppliers were expected in Puerto Rico Monday or Tuesday and that the government hoped to complete an alternative-supply agreement early in the week. No signed contract, supplier identity, price, delivery volume or arrival schedule was included in the publicly accessible report. The reported depletion is consistent with the approximately 1 a.m. Saturday projection in PREPA's emergency court filing. It is not, by itself, proof that NFE met every disclosure deadline or that an alternative delivery is imminent. DINA found no newer entry in the Puerto Rico Energy Bureau's public rate docket and no publicly accessible operator notice independently documenting the terminal's current inventory during this update. A deadline moved forward by almost a day At an October 29 Puerto Rico House hearing, NFEnergía general manager Zak Ahmed said approximately 7,800 cubic meters of LNG remained aboard the Amur River and could supply the San Juan plant through Sunday, November 1. He said the company could not guarantee when the next cargo would arrive. But a court-filed supplemental motion says a terminal manager emailed Genera PR at 12:17 p.m. Friday and projected that the available gas would be exhausted at approximately 1 a.m. Saturday—nearly a day earlier than the legislative testimony suggested. The motion says Genera had made 18 requests over 17 days for inventory and replacement-vessel information before receiving that partial written response. That revised projection is evidence of an urgent fuel-supply risk, not proof that a blackout occurred. San Juan generating units can operate on diesel, but PREPA told the court that doing so is more expensive, reduces output and efficiency and increases equipment risk. What the court ordered Within 24 hours, NFEnergía must provide PREPA's contracting representatives and Genera with the remaining LNG volume aboard the Amur River, the projected depletion time and the identity, cargo volume and expected arrival date of the next vessel, if one exists. The company must also state whether its facilities can receive, regasify and redeliver LNG supplied by another company and designate an authorized coordinator. Within 72 hours, NFEnergía must provide terminal procedures, vessel-compatibility requirements and other technical information needed for third-party deliveries. The court prohibited the company from entering agreements or taking actions that would obstruct those deliveries during the order's 14-day term. The ruling reflects a preliminary finding that PREPA showed a substantial likelihood of succeeding on its claim that the contract's Section 22.12.1 “tolling” provision had been triggered. It is not a final liability judgment, and New Fortress can continue contesting PREPA's interpretation and allegations. The cost dispute behind the emergency PREPA alleged in its emergency filing that one San Juan unit had been operating on diesel since September 16 and that the more expensive fuel cost more than $18 million during the second half of September. It also alleged that NFE owed approximately $45.8 million in “Deliver or Pay” penalties during 2026. Those figures are PREPA's claims in litigation; the court's temporary order did not finally award those amounts or establish liability. NFEnergía has attributed earlier disruptions to port-access and pilotage problems. The company has acknowledged that the contract allows alternative suppliers under specified conditions but has said operational, maritime-safety and responsibility agreements must be completed. Those defenses remain part of the dispute. Why it matters Puerto Rico's grid remains vulnerable to fuel interruptions and expensive emergency generation. A lapse in LNG supply can force plants onto diesel, raising immediate operating costs that may ultimately affect ratepayers while also reducing available capacity and increasing equipment stress. The order also tests whether a privately operated terminal serving public generation can be opened quickly enough for contractual safeguards to work in practice. A right to use an alternative supplier has little value if inventory data, vessel specifications and terminal procedures arrive only after fuel is exhausted. DINA analysis DINA analysis: The most consequential accountability issue is not merely that NFE could not promise another cargo. It is the reported information gap: lawmakers heard a November 1 estimate, while a later company email cited in court moved depletion to 1 a.m. October 31 after repeated government requests for details. DINA analysis: The court order creates a measurable compliance test. By the 24-hour deadline, the government should be able to disclose whether it received a verified inventory, a replacement-vessel schedule and a clear statement of terminal availability. By 72 hours, it should know whether an alternative supplier can actually use the terminal—not just whether the contract says that it may. DINA analysis: If the reported switch to diesel is sustained, the immediate accountability measure is the daily incremental cost borne by the public. Officials should publish the units' fuel burn, output, availability and diesel-versus-gas cost each day until LNG service resumes, along with the procurement method and full terms for any emergency supplier. DINA analysis: Officials should not describe the temporary order as proof that every allegation against New Fortress is true. The judge preserved the status quo and addressed an immediate reliability risk while the contract case proceeds. Strongest accountability angle PREPA, Genera, the Puerto Rico Public-Private Partnerships Authority and NFEnergía should produce a timestamped record showing when each entity knew the Amur River inventory would be depleted, what was communicated to lawmakers and grid operators, when an alternative supplier was contacted and what prevented a replacement delivery from being secured sooner. Urgent follow-up and public-records priorities Compliance filings: Obtain NFEnergía's 24-hour and 72-hour responses, including the verified fuel balance, depletion time, next-vessel details and terminal-access procedures. Fuel status: Confirm through Genera and PREPA whether LNG deliveries to San Juan Units 5 and 6 stopped, when each unit switched fuel and how much generation capacity and efficiency changed. Alternative supplier: Identify the supplier PREPA says is ready to deliver, the proposed price, volume, vessel or ISO-container method, required approvals and earliest feasible delivery date. Communication trail: Request the 18 information demands cited by PREPA, NFE's responses and the October 30 terminal-manager email. Compare each timestamp with House testimony and grid-dispatch decisions. Public cost: Seek daily diesel-versus-gas cost reports, Deliver-or-Pay calculations, disputed invoices and any projected customer-rate effect. Treat claimed penalties as contested until adjudicated or paid. Court calendar: Track the referred preliminary-injunction proceedings and any motion by NFE to modify, stay or dissolve the temporary order. Sources U.S. District Court for the District of Puerto Rico public docket activity — PREPA v. NFEnergía LLC et al., case 3:26-cv-01423 (https://casemagic.ai/case/prd/3-26-cv-01423) Federal temporary restraining order — document copy (https://api.jayfonseca.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/TRO_NFE.pdf) PREPA urgent supplemental motion — document copy (https://api.jayfonseca.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/LOSDATOS_Urgent_Supplemental_Motion.pdf) Puerto Rico Energy Bureau docket NEPR-MI-2020-0001 — October 30 natural-gas availability order and related records (https://energia.pr.gov/numero_orden/nerp-mi-2020-0001/) La Fortaleza — official background on the tolling dispute and September 28 action (https://www.fortaleza.pr.gov/prensa/gobernadora-ordena-demandar-a-nfe-para-activar-suministro-alterno-de-gas-natural) El Nuevo Día — reported LNG depletion, diesel generation and alternative-supplier discussions, October 31, 2026 (https://www.elnuevodia.com/noticias/locales/notas/tras-decision-contra-new-fortress-energy-apuntan-a-contar-con-acuerdos-de-suplido-de-gas-para-la-semana-entrante/) Metro Puerto Rico — court order and government response, October 30, 2026 (https://www.metro.pr/noticias/2026/10/30/tribunal-ordena-a-new-fortress-facilitar-entrada-de-suplidores-alternos-de-gas-natural/) NotiCel — order, legislative testimony and NFE response, October 31, 2026 (https://noticel.com/noticias/20261031/tribunal-federal-ordena-a-nfe-permitir-la-entrada-de-otros-suplidores-de-gas/) REPUBLICATION NOTICE Original DINA-authored text may be republished without charge under the terms at https://www.dinanews247.press/syndication#terms. Third-party material and images require separate permission. SOCIAL POST Federal Judge Orders New Fortress to Open Puerto Rico LNG Terminal to Alternative Suppliers The LNG aboard the Amur River was exhausted early Saturday and San Juan Units 5 and 6 returned to more expensive diesel, El Nuevo Día reports, as the government pursues an alternative supplier under a 14-day federal order. Breaking News · Puerto Rico · Federal Court · Electric Grid · LNG Supply · New Fortress Energy · Public Spending · Accountability · DINA Analysis By DINA Puerto Rico Energy, Courts & Public Accountability Desk Primary-record reporting, grid-reliability accountability, public-spending analysis and fact/allegation separation Democracy Independent News Association (DINA) Read the full report and sources: https://www.dinanews247.press/articles/puerto-rico-new-fortress-tro-october-31 #DINA #PublicAccountability