BLUEFIELD, W.Va. (WVVA) - Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., is optimistic the U.S. Supreme Court will rule in favor of Congress’s right to pass the law to finish the Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP).

Capito said during a virtual press briefing Thursday that she is “confidently hopeful” Chief Justice John Roberts will make the decision to rule in favor of Congress after an emergency ruling by the court was requested by the MVP owner, Equitrans Midstream.

The request was made when the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond once again stopped construction of the long-delayed 303-mile, 42-inch diameter natural gas pipeline that will run from north central West Virginia to Chatham, Va. and then to North Carolina.

That stoppage happened after the Wilderness Society filed a lawsuit saying the law Congress passed to speed up construction included ruling out judicial review of this project, violating the separation of powers part of the Constitution.

Work had resumed on the pipeline after Congress acted, but the Fourth Circuit granted the stay until it could review the lawsuit, regardless of what Congress passed.

Capito said the Fourth Circuit, which has ruled repeatedly to stop construction after lawsuits related to federal permits were filed, is “politicized” and the law Congress passed did not violate the Constitution.

“I don’t see a problem of separation of powers,” she said. “The Fourth Circuit has a political agenda … The MVP has not gotten fair shake from the Fourth Circuit. It’s very rigged.”

Capito said that, in an emergency order, Roberts can make a “singular decision or go to the full court,” and it is his choice because he is over the Fourth Circuit.

She said she thinks that Roberts will make a singular decision and that is good because a decision must be made soon since the MVP is up against a deadline to get started in time to finish before winter.

“I still think they are in the window where they think they can complete by the end of the year,” she said. “But that window is closing. That is why this emergency decision is being sought.”

Capito said the Justice Department must weigh in on the decision so she doesn’t expect a ruling until at least week after next.

The MVP, which is about 95 percent complete, can be completed in about three months after work starts, company officials have said.

Capito said the pipeline will produce about 3 percent of the country’s natural gas supply and be an economic boost to the state.

Capito, along with West Virginia Representatives  Alex Mooney and Carol Miller as well as Sen. Joe Manchin have filed amicus briefs to the Supreme Court urging the court to overturn the Fourth Circuit stays and allow work to resume.

“I think in the end … the Supreme Court will side with Congress’s ability to plainly state where, how and when something of this nature can go forward,” she said.

About 3.5 miles of the MVP remains to be finished in Monroe and Giles counties as it runs across Peters Mountain near LIndside.