Expansions

El Paso Natural Gas and Texas Eastern Transmission LP (Tetco) have received FERC clearances to begin construction on pipeline projects in the West and Mid-Atlantic regions.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issued final certificates or favorable preliminary determinations (PD) on nonenvironmental grounds to five major pipeline expansion projects last Wednesday at its regularly scheduled meeting. The Commission awarded a certificate to Northwest Pipeline’s Evergreen expansion in the state of Washington and granted a PD to PG&E Gas Transmission Northwest’s 2003 Expansion project in Idaho, Washington and Oregon. Both projects would serve mainly new power generation in the Pacific Northwest region. Several eastern pipeline projects also received regulatory approvals.

Assets may be sold, the domestic and global power plant expansions may be curtailed, but one thing is certain: Mirant has no intention of exiting the risk marketing and trading arena.

On a day of giving that included certificates for multiple pipeline expansions (see related stories), FERC also showed it can taketh away. The Commission said Wednesday it will let the price-cap waiver expire Sept. 30 in its pilot program on short-term capacity release transactions.

In the next 10 years, Florida Power & Light Co. (FPL) expects to increase its generating capacity by 32% through expansions and new facilities, according to a filing with the Florida Public Service Commission (PSC) last week. FPL’s plans for new capacity, which include the Martin and Manatee expansion (see Power Market Today, Jan. 16 ), call for the use of natural gas technology in highly efficient combined-cycle generating units at several existing power plant sites. The next most likely sites for future expansion are FPL facilities in Cape Canaveral, Riviera, Port Everglades and the Midway substation.

The arrival of a new parent with deep pockets made an immediate difference to Westcoast Energy’s pipeline system in the western Canadian natural gas drilling hot spot of British Columbia. The ink was barely dry on the final agreement for the US$8 billion purchase of Westcoast by Duke Energy Corp. before the newly-appointed president of the resulting Duke Energy Gas Transmission Canada, Bob Reid, gave the green light for a C$338.4 million (US$215 million) expansion project.

FERC issued favorable preliminary determinations on non-environmental grounds last week on two major pipeline expansion projects, one of which would double Kern River Gas Transmission pipeline capacity to California. The other project, Florida Gas Transmission’s (FGT) $105.4 million Phase VI expansion, would provide 85,356 Dth/d of additional pipeline capacity for markets in Mississippi, Louisiana, Alabama and Florida.

FERC issued favorable preliminary determinations on non-environmental grounds Wednesday on two major pipeline expansion projects, one of which would double Kern River Gas Transmission pipeline capacity to California. The other project, Florida Gas Transmission’s (FGT) $105.4 million Phase VI expansion, would provide 85,356 Dth/d of additional pipeline capacity for markets in Mississippi, Louisiana, Alabama and Florida.

FERC last week issued a final certificate to Southern Natural Gas to expand its pipeline system to serve new power generation in Alabama and gave Tennessee Gas Pipeline the green light to increase firm takeaway capacity at connections with Maritimes & Northeast Pipeline and Portland Natural Gas Transmission in Massachusetts in order to increase the supply of Canadian natural gas to New England power plants.