Expansions

With three expansions to its system in the works for 2002 and 2003, Southern Natural Gas is turning its attention to 2004, soliciting non-binding requests for long-term firm transportation on any part of its system.

While voicing continuing support for the state’s electricity recovery plan and the specific deal to sell San Diego’s utility transmission assets, Sempra Energy’s CEO last Thursday advocated more political reality and attention to expanding U.S. natural gas infrastructure in outlining his current views on California’s electricity crisis to business leaders attending a joint forecast of the economic impact from the power woes by UCLA’s Anderson School of Business and Cambridge Energy Research Associates (CERA).

Confirming plans announced two weeks ago by Westcoast Energy CEO Michael Phelps, Maritimes & Northeast Pipeline said last week it has signed agreements with PanCanadian Petroleum Corp. to transport up to 400 MMcf/d of gas from PanCanadian’s C$1 billion Deep Panuke project offshore Nova Scotia to markets in Atlantic Canada and New England (see NGI, June 18).

Confirming plans announced last week by Westcoast Energy CEO Michael Phelps, Maritimes & Northeast Pipeline said yesterday it has signed agreements with PanCanadian Petroleum Corp. to transport up to 400 MMcf/d of gas from PanCanadian’s C$1 billion Deep Panuke project offshore Nova Scotia to markets in Atlantic Canada and New England (see Daily GPI, June 15).

With so many proposed new pipelines and expansions in the works to serve the wild demand growth in California, Kinder Morgan Energy Partners LP and Calpine Corp. wasted no time last week in marketing space on their massive $1.7 billion gas pipeline project, which was announced last week (see Daily GPI, May 3). The companies launched an open season on Monday to take binding market requests for service through June 1 on their 1,030-mile Sonoran Pipeline.

With so many proposed new pipelines and expansions in the works to serve the wild demand growth in California, Kinder Morgan Energy Partners LP and Calpine Corp. wasted no time this week in marketing space on their massive $1.7 billion gas pipeline project, which was announced last week (see Daily GPI, May 3). The companies launched an open season yesterday to take binding market requests for service through June 1 on their 1,030-mile Sonoran Pipeline.

Despite claims that inadequate takeaway capacity at the SouthernCalifornia border had nothing to do with the record spot priceincreases there this winter, Southern California Gas Co.,nevertheless, plans to expand several receipt points by 150 MMcf/d.

FERC staff issued favorable environmental impact statements onproposed pipeline expansions by Trans Union Interstate and WilliamsGas Pipeline Central. Both projects primarily will serve new powergeneration in the Midcontinent and Gulf Coast regions. In itsEnvironmental Assessments, Staff said the projects would have noadverse environmental impact if certain mitigating measures wereundertaken. Trans Union Interstate is proposing a 430,000 MMBtu/dpipeline extension to a 2,700 MW combined-cycle, gas-fired powerplant proposed by Union Power Partners near El Dorado, AR. Thepower plant is expected to be operation in spring of 2002. Anapplication for the 42-mile 30-inch diameter pipeline was filedlast December. The Williams project, called the Pleasant HillPipeline, would involve construction of two miles of 24-inchdiameter pipe and 2,890 hp of compression in Franklin County, KS,and Cass and Johnson County, MI. The project would provide 44,200Dth/d of gas in the winter and 88,200 Dth/d of gas in the summer toUtiliCorp United’s proposed Pleasant Hill Power plant in CassCounty, MI, to UtiliCorp’s distribution system in Missouri and toU.S. Energy Services in Pettis County, MI. UtiliCorp also willconstruct its own eight mile pipeline to the Williams facilities.

It may be time for all the critics of the proposed Independence,MarketLink and Millennium expansions to pipe down. Gasdeliverability to the Northeast clearly is not as rosy as manyindustry experts once thought as illustrated by the record high gasprices last week during a period of extreme cold.