FERC Tuesday gave Perryville Gas Storage LLC the go-ahead to expand its proposed salt dome storage facility and associated facilities, which are under construction in the Crowville Salt Dome in northeast Louisiana.

In January 2010 the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approved Perryville Gas’s application to build a two-cavern facility with working gas capacity of 15 Bcf (7.5 Bcf in each cavern), near Delhi, LA (see Daily GPI, Jan. 28, 2010). The agency has approved the company’s request to expand working capacity by 5 Bcf (2.5 Bcf in each cavern).

The project would have peak withdrawal of 600 MMcf/d with one cavern in service, which would climb to 1.2 Bcf/d of peak deliverability when both are caverns are operating. Its initial peak injection rate would be about 226 MMcf/d, the company said (see Daily GPI, Oct. 26, 2009).

“Perryville states that it ‘has received expressions of interest for substantially all of the capacity in the two caverns, necessitating the request in this proceeding for additional working capacity,” the FERC order said [CP11-159]. “Perryville believes that firm precedent agreements for substantially all of the proposed new capacity will be executed following Commission approval of the proposals.”

The order authorizes Houston-based Perryville Gas Storage, a subsidiary of Cardinal Gas Storage Partners, to drill three additional freshwater supply wells and six brine disposal wells. These facilities “are necessary to meet a January 2013 in-service date for the expanded facilities,” the order said. Commercial storage services from one of the two 7.5 Bcf caverns could begin even earlier, according to Perryville Gas.

The storage facility would have two direct pipeline interconnections: an 11.8-mile, 36-inch diameter interconnect with CenterPoint Energy Gas Transmission and a 2.56-mile, 24-inch diameter interconnect with Columbia Gulf Transmission. The facility also would have potential access to CenterPoint Energy’s Perryville Hub and a number of other pipelines at Delhi.

The project would provide storage for gas coming from the Gulf of Mexico and shale gas supplies from North Louisiana and Texas, said David Hayden, senior vice president of Cardinal.

The Commission approved Perryville’s request for continued authority to charge market-based rates for firm and interruptible storage service and interruptible hub and wheeling service.

Cardinal was formed in 2008 as a joint venture of Martin Resource Management Corp. and Energy Capital Partners to develop and own gas storage facilities. Cardinal also owns Arcadia Gas Storage LLC in North Louisiana and is in the process of developing other storage facilities in North America.

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