Just in case there were any doubters still out there, AlliancePipeline says it now has nine of 10 mainline construction crews inthe field installing the $3 billion pipeline system. The crewsstarted construction on two spreads in North Dakota, one inMinnesota, two in Iowa and one in Illinois. Two spreads inSaskatchewan are to start today and one early next week.

“The Alliance Pipeline system – which includes the Aux Sablenatural gas liquids extraction and fractionation facility – willprovide increased access to North American markets for westernCanadian natural gas resources,” said Alliance CEO DennisCornelson.

Over the next 400 days Alliance plans to install more than 2,300miles of steel pipe weighing over 1.2 million tons. The system willbe powered by 14 mainline compressor stations totaling more than550,000 horsepower. The related $365 million Aux Sable LiquidProducts extraction and fractionation facilities will be inChannahon, IL. The system is to be in service Oct. 1, 2000.

Seven of the 14 mainline compressor station sites have startedconstruction; all but one of the remainder will be underconstruction by the end of June.

Alliance is designed to initially offer 1.325 Bcf/d of firmdelivery service from the gas producing areas of northeasternBritish Columbia and northwestern Alberta to markets in themidwestern United States and eastern Canada. It consists of threesignificant, integrated components:

Investors in Alliance and Aux Sable Liquid Products LP includeaffiliates of Duke Energy, 9.8%; Enbridge Inc., 21.4%; Fort ChicagoEnergy Partners LP, 26.0%; The Coastal Corp., 14.4%; The WilliamsCompanies, 4.8%; and Westcoast Energy Inc., 23.6%.

The Alberta-to-Chicago toll on Alliance will be a 93 cent/Mcfdemand charge and an energy toll of 81 cents/MMBtu, assuming 1,070But gas and including fuel and a 16% authorized overrun service(AOS).

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