The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is seeking initial public comments as it begins an environmental assessment (EA) on the proposed Western Expansion Project II, a 95-mile, 16-inch diameter natural gas liquids (NGL) pipeline proposed by Enterprise Mid-America Pipeline.

The pipeline, which the company plans to build in 2012, would follow an existing pipeline corridor across Colorado’s Rio Blanco, Garfield, and Mesa counties, as well as Utah’s Uintah and Grand counties. The pipeline, which would cross BLM lands in both Colorado and Utah, would increase the company’s capacity for transporting NGLs from Wyoming and Colorado to Hobbs, NM.

The newly proposed pipe is evidence of Enterprise Products Partners LP’s continued focus on expanding NGL infrastructure as prices for the commodity remain attractive and production continues to ramp up from shale plays across the country.

Enterprise owns interests in approximately 16,900 miles of NGL pipelines, 160 million barrels of working capacity of NGL and related product storage and import and export facilities.

Enterprise has said that its most significant NGL pipelines are the Mid-America and Seminole pipeline systems, which together total 9,441 miles. The Mid-America system covers 13 states and consists of the 3,021 mile Rocky Mountain pipeline, the 2,769 mile Conway North pipeline and the 2,278 mile Conway South pipeline.

During 2010, approximately 51% of the volumes transported on the Mid-America Pipeline System were mixed NGLs originating from natural gas processing plants. The remaining volumes consisted of purity NGL products originating from NGL fractionators located in Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas, as well as deliveries from Canada.

The company also continues to beef up its Texas NGL infrastructure to serve growing production from the Eagle Ford Shale of South Texas. Late last month the company said it plans to construct a sixth NGL fractionator at its Mont Belvieu, TX, facility to increase capacity there by 75,000 b/d (see Daily GPI, June 28). The project follows recent similar expansions by the partnership and joins multiple other projects for the “Henry Hub” of NGLs as producers increasingly turn to liquids-rich gas to lift their bottom lines. Enterprise would have the capability to fractionate more than 450,000 b/d of NGLs at Mont Belvieu. Systemwide, the partnership’s net fractionation capacity would increase to more than 780,000 b/d.

Regarding the Western Expansion Project II, the BLM said it is seeking initial comments by Aug. 5; a second opportunity for comment will begin when the EA is drafted. Written comments and questions should be directed to the BLM Northwest Colorado District Office, 2815 H Road, Grand Junction, CO 81506, or via e-mail at gjfo_webmail@blm.gov. A map is available at www.blm.gov/co/st/en.html. Additional information is available from Erin Dreyfuss at (970) 244-3008.

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