Meritage Midstream Services LLC and private equity power broker Riverstone Holdings LLC on Wednesday said they were teaming up once again, with Riverstone providing $500 million to pursue new natural gas liquids (NGL) midstream opportunities in some of North America’s emerging resource plays.

Meritage Midstream (Meritage II) is the second partnership with Riverstone. Meritage I, formed in 2009, initially funded Eagle Ford Shale opportunities, including the Eagle Ford Escondido Gathering System and Cuervo Creek Gathering System, which were purchased by Howard Energy Partners in April (see Shale Daily, March 16).

Meritage II CEO Steven B. Huckaby and President Nick Thomas helped establish the first midstream partnership.

“Riverstone’s financial strength and insight together with our deep midstream experience and industry relationships put Meritage II in a very strong position,” Huckaby said. Meritage II plans to “develop highly strategic gathering systems and processing facilities for natural gas and NGL producers.”

Meritage II’s focus will be “where existing infrastructure is insufficient to handle expected volume growth or lacks the optionality and flexibility to optimize producer pricing.” Acquisitions as well as greenfield developments are on the agenda.

“The team has delivered in the past, and we believe its experience and deep knowledge of many of the emerging resource plays will yield exceptional results once again,” said Riverstone co-founders Pierre Lapeyre and David Leuschen.

Riverstone conducts buyout and growth capital investments in the midstream, exploration and production, oilfield services, power and renewable sectors of the energy industry. To date the firm has committed $18.4 billion to 86 investments in North America, Latin America, Europe and Asia.