Alberta Energy Company Ltd. (AEC) has expanded its NorthAmerican gas storage network with the acquisition of the 15 BcfManchester Gas Storage Facility in Grant County, OK for $42million.

AEC subsidiary Salt Plains Storage Inc. reached an agreementwith Manchester Gas Storage Inc., and its affiliate MGL Inc., topurchase the Manchester facility.

“This acquisition strengthens our North American network of gasstorage facilities. Salt Plains is ideally located in a regionwhere demand for natural gas as a primary fuel for heating andpower generation is growing,” said Rick Daniel, vice-president, AECStorage and Hub Services, and president of Salt Plains Storage,Inc. “Salt Plains is ready to contract storage capacity startingApril 1.”

The Manchester facility will be renamed Salt Plains Gas StorageFacility. Located about 110 miles north of Oklahoma City, SaltPlains is tied to the Williams Central and Oneok Gas Transportationpipelines.

Salt Plains can store 15 Bcf of natural gas, inject 100 MMcf/dand withdraw 200 MMcf/d. Salt Plains will be offering both long-and short-term firm storage services. The purchase and sale wasapproved earlier this month by the Federal Bankruptcy Court forNorthern Oklahoma. The transaction closed Monday.

As Canada’s largest gas producer and North America’s largestindependent gas storage operator with 133 Bcf, AEC makes gasstorage a key part of its business plan. Anchored by the AECO C Hubin southeast Alberta, other facilities include storage at Hythe,AB, Wild Goose Storage near Gridley, CA, plus leased storagecapacity in the Gulf Coast and Midwest regions. AEC’s NorthAmerican storage network has withdrawal capability is more than 2.5Bcf/d.

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