Additional

Honeoye Storage Corp. has received FERC approval to expand itswestern New York sandstone storage facility to provide anadditional 1.8 Bcf of firm service capacity under market-basedrates. Honeoye plans an open season to start before the end of Juneand run through July.

Honeoye Storage Corp. has received FERC approval to expand itswestern New York sandstone storage facility to provide anadditional 1.8 Bcf of firm service capacity under market-basedrates. Honeoye plans an open season to start before the end of Juneand run through July.

Williams’ Transco pipeline has received approval for itsSouthCoast Expansion, a project to deliver up to 204 MMcf/d ofadditional supplies starting in November, primarily in Georgia andSouth Carolina. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission issued acertificate for the project last Monday, accepting Transco’salternate incremental rate scheme, requiring signed 15-yearcontracts for 100% of capacity, and dismissing protests (see FERCDocket CP99-392)

Williams’ Transco pipeline has received approval for its SouthCoastExpansion, a project to deliver up to 204 MMcf/d of additionalsupplies starting in November, primarily in Georgia and SouthCarolina. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission issued acertificate for the project Monday, accepting Transco’s alternateincremental rate scheme, requiring signed 15-year contracts for 100%of capacity, and dismissing protests (see FERC Docket CP99-392)

Dominion Resources and Peoples Energy announced plans to expandElwood Energy LLC’s peaking gas-fired power plant in Elwood, IL, byan additional 600 MW. The expansion to the state’s first merchantpower facility will double the capacity to 1,200 MW and is thesecond phase in a process that is expected to eventually bringtotal capacity of the plant to 3,100 MW.

Dominion Resources and Peoples Energy announced plans to expandElwood Energy LLC’s peaking gas-fired power plant in Elwood, IL, byan additional 600 MW. The expansion to the state’s first merchantpower facility will double the capacity to 1,200 MW and is thesecond phase in a process that is expected to eventually bringtotal capacity of the plant to 3,100 MW. The $230 million expansionwill add four General Electric 150 MW gas-fired turbines.Construction to add the high efficiency, low-emission turbines willbegin this summer and be completed during the summer of 2001, intime to meet peak summer demand. The Elwood facility is locatedadjacent to several interstate gas pipelines that provide access tocompetitively priced gas supplies. The facility’s generatorsinterconnect to a high-capacity Commonwealth Edison transmissioncorridor that provides delivery to Midwest power markets. Contractdiscussions with potential purchasers of Elwood’s expanded outputare underway, but details are not available. Existing production issold under multi-year contracts with Commonwealth Edison and EngageEnergy US, LP. Elwood’s existing 600 megawatts of capacity wasplaced in service in July 1999. When fully built, Elwood would beIllinois’ largest merchant facility.

If regulators wanted further proof of need for additionalpipeline capacity to the Northeast, Independence Pipeline andTranscontinental Gas Pipe Line said they got it last month whendelivered prices in some markets shot up to nearly $20 per Dth.(See NGI, Jan. 24) Citing the January deliverability problem, thetwo pipelines separately asked FERC to deny the requests for a stayof the interim order conditionally approving their Northeastprojects.

If regulators wanted further proof of need for additionalpipeline capacity to the Northeast, Independence Pipeline andTranscontinental Gas Pipe Line said they got it last month whendelivered prices in some markets shot up to nearly $20Dth. Citingthe January deliverability shortage, the two pipelines separatelyasked FERC to deny the requests for a stay of the interim orderconditionally approving their Northeast projects.

After a strong opening at $2.28 failed to entice much in the wayof additional buying, natural gas futures gave back most of thegains achieved during Wednesday’s Access trading session anddrifted lower for much of the yesterday’s session. Although itsmomentum was decidedly to the downside Thursday, the Februarycontract did manage to post a higher high at $2.29 and escape witha modest, 0.8-cent advance to finish at $2.252. Estimated volumewas thin with only 45,585 contracts changing hands.