Plains All American Pipeline LP and Enterprise Products Partners LP are constructing a condensate gathering system into their Three Rivers, TX, terminal and doubling the mainline capacity of their Eagle Ford Joint Venture (JV) Pipeline from Three Rivers to Corpus Christi, TX.

The expansions are supported by a long-term production commitment and are expected to enter service during the third quarter of 2015, the partners said.

The Eagle Ford JV Pipeline system is a 50/50 joint venture of Plains and Enterprise that delivers crude oil and condensate via pipeline from Gardendale in La Salle County, TX, to the Three Rivers and Corpus Christi refineries and to other markets via marine transport facilities at Corpus Christi. The pipeline supplies the Houston-area market through a connection to the Enterprise Crude Pipeline terminal at Lyssy in Wilson County, TX.

The partners said they would construct a gathering system with 55 miles of gathering and trunkline pipeline to connect Karnes County and Live Oak County production areas to the Three Rivers terminal. The companies would also construct a 70-mile, 20-inch diameter pipeline from Three Rivers to Corpus Christi as well as expand storage and pumping capacity at Three Rivers.

Combined with a previously announced expansion, the project effectively loops the Eagle Ford JV Pipeline from Gardendale to Corpus Christi and increases the JV system capacity to more than 600,000 b/d. The Eagle Ford JV Pipeline would be connected with the Cactus pipeline, which Plains is constructing from the Permian Basin at McCamey to the Eagle Ford JV Pipeline at Gardendale.

Plains and Enterprise would also build a terminal on the Corpus Christi ship channel to support the increased volumes to be shipped via pipeline to the region. The dock is to have the capacity to handle a variety of ocean-going vessels and is planned to be in service by 2017.