The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on Wednesday gave Guardian Pipeline LLC the green light to begin construction on the Wisconsin portion of the 142-mile pipeline that will serve growing gas markets in the upper Midwest. Construction on the northern Illinois part of the line already is in process, according to Guardian sponsors.

The line would introduce pipeline-on-pipeline competition into a region that has long been dominated by ANR Pipeline. It would extend from the Chicago Hub near Joliet, IL, through the northern half of the state into southern Wisconsin, terminating at Ixonia, WI, and would be capable of delivering 750,000 Dth/d from interconnections with Alliance Pipeline, Northern Border, Midwestern Gas Transmission and Natural Gas Pipeline of America.

In addition to the 36-inch diameter pipeline, the $224 million project would include 22,225 horsepower of new compression. It is targeted for in-service in November of this year.

Guardian said it has firm precedent agreements with Wisconsin Gas for 662 MMcf/d, or 88% of the pipeline’s total capacity. Wisconsin Gas plans to build a new lateral on its distribution system to connect to Guardian at Ixonia. The project’s sponsors include CMS Energy, Viking Gas Transmission and WICOR.

In an unrelated project, the Commission on Wednesday gave PG&E Gas Transmission, Northwest an extension until Nov. 1 to complete and place into service a looping expansion of its mainline system in Washington.

The project, which was certificated by FERC in July 2001, calls for the construction of 21 miles of 42-inch diameter pipeline parallel to its existing mainlines, which extend from Kingsgate, BC, southward 612 miles to Malin, OR. It also would add 97,5000 horsepower at five existing compressor stations in Washington, Oregon and Idaho. The entire project would boost PG&E Gas Transmission capacity by 210,800 Dth/d on an annual basis.

The looping portion of the expansion already has been installed and is operational, the pipeline told FERC, but it said it needed more time to complete the compression facilities.

In approving the project, the Commission said it would give markets in California and the Pacific Northwest access to gas reserves in the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin.

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