Corpus

The Port of Corpus Christi in South Texas, where a building boom is underway from oil and natural gas growth fueled by the Permian Basin and Eagle Ford Shale, is readying for another big expansion designed to transport energy to Mexico.

An environmental assessment (EA) of Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line Co. LLC’s (Transco) Gulf Connector Project, a two-phase expansion of the Texas and Louisiana natural gas system, is scheduled to be issued Sept. 21, with federal authorizations due 90 days later, according FERC.

Buckeye Partners LP is planning a binding open season for a new crude oil pipeline from the Permian Basin to Corpus Christi, TX, that would meet growing demand for crude takeaway capacity from the booming region.

Following months of debate, leaders of a rural Coastal Bend community near Corpus Christi, TX, are making it clear they would welcome the world’s largest ethane steam cracker, a $9 billion-plus project proposed by ExxonMobil Corp. and Saudi Arabia Basic Industries Corp. (SABIC).

Just over a year since Cheniere Energy Inc. became the first to export liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the Lower 48, the company can tap gas from any North American basin it would care to. Meanwhile, Cheniere Gulf Coast exports and export capacity continue to grow.

EPIC Pipeline Co. LLC is offering capacity in a proposed crude oil and condensate pipeline that would run from the Permian Basin to Corpus Christi, TX, with multiple receipt points in the western Permian serving producers in the Delaware and Midland sub-basins.

The Railroad Commission of Texas(RRC) will host an Oil and Gas Regulatory Seminar in Corpus Christi, TX, on Tuesday, Aug. 16. Topics to be covered include drilling permits; completions; inactive well requirements; oil, gas or geothermal resource operations in hydrogen sulfide areas; production reporting; pipeline accident/incident reporting; pipeline permitting; surface casing exceptions; and website queries for proration. Early bird registration costs $150 per person through Aug. 5. Late registration is $200 per person beginning Aug. 6. The event will be at the Omni Corpus Christi Hotel, where group rates are available. For more information, visit the commissionwebsite.

An abundance of hydrocarbons in the United States and growing demand for gasoline, diesel and propane in Mexico are behind the development of Rangeland Energy’s South Texas Energy Products System (STEPS).

ConocoPhillips on Thursday (Dec. 31) expected to finish loading what it believes is the first domestic cargo of crude oil to be exported since the lifting of the 40-year ban on such exports on Dec. 18.