Sempra Energy unit Sempra Pipelines & Storage said the first of two caverns at its Mississippi Hub gas storage facility has entered service.

Located at the Bond Salt Dome in Simpson County, MS, the facility is accessible to the shale basins of East Texas and Louisiana, traditional gas supplies in the Gulf of Mexico and along the U.S. Gulf Coast, as well as liquefied natural gas imports.

“Mississippi Hub will provide high-quality storage services to expanding markets while serving a robust region for natural gas supply,” said Sempra Pipelines & Storage CEO George S. Liparidis.

The first cavern is designed to provide up to 10-cycle service on 7.5 Bcf of working capacity. Pipeline interconnects will include Southern Natural Gas, Southeast Supply Header and Transcontinental Gas Pipeline. A second cavern, which will add 7.5 Bcf of working capacity, is under construction and is slated for completion in the second quarter of 2012.

In September 2009 FERC authorized Mississippi Hub to increase to 22.1 Bcf the storage capacity that it originally approved in 2007 (see Daily GPI, Sept. 18, 2009). And last July the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission issued Mississippi Hub a certificate to double its capacity (see Daily GPI, July 6).

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