Kinder Morgan Energy Partners LP (KMP) is holding a binding open season through May for capacity on the proposed 1,025-mile Freedom Pipeline LLC for transporting Permian Basin crude from Texas to refineries in both Southern and Northern California.
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Industry Brief
Sunoco Logistics Partners LP is holding a binding open season for its Mariner South Pipeline, which is intended to transport export-grade propane and butane, from Lone Star NGL LLC’s storage and fractionation complex in Mont Belvieu, TX, to Sunoco Logistics’ terminal in Nederland, TX. The pipeline is to be available for other natural gas liquids and petroleum products depending on shipper interest, Sunoco said. Initial capacity is expected to be 200,000 b/d and could be scaled to support higher volumes as needed. The pipeline is expected to be operational by the first quarter of 2015. For information, visit www.sunocologistics.com/marinersouth.
Industry Brief
Equitrans LP is holding a nonbinding open season through March 13 for firm transmission and storage capacity on a system to be known as Allegheny Valley Connector, which would consist of transmission and storage assets that are expected to transfer to EQT Corp. as part of a transaction with Peoples Natural Gas Co. LLC. EQT is the parent of Equitrans through its EQT Midstream Partners LP. The system is in the Marcellus Shale region, and its primary function is to store and transport gas to Peoples interconnects, including gas for use by Peoples and other suppliers. Information is at www.eqtmidstreampartners.com.
Investors Call on E&Ps Once Again to Disclose Drilling Risks
Investor groups for the fourth year in a row are urging some of the largest natural gas and oil producers in the United States to disclose information about how the risks involved with unconventional drilling operations are managed and measured. Some explorers also have been called on to disclose fugitive emissions from natural gas transmission.
Industry Briefs
Merchant Energy Holdings LLC is holding a nonbinding open season through Feb. 20 for up to 8 Bcf of firm, high-deliverability, multi-cycle working gas storage capacity available April 1 at its ECGS facility in Logan County, CO, about 90 miles east of the Cheyenne Hub. ECGS began operation in April and is completing its second phase of expansion, which includes additional injection/withdrawal wells, gathering and processing facilities and gas compression. ECGS is connected with Trailblazer Pipeline and has access to other major pipelines at the Cheyenne Hub. Total injection and withdrawal capability after the expansion will be more than 200,000 Dth/d. For information, visit www.mehllc.com or contact Scott Smith, (713) 403-6472, ssmith@mehllc.com; or Kevin Legg, (720) 351-4004, klegg@mehllc.com.
Industry Brief
El Paso Natural Gas Co. (EPNG), owned by Kinder Morgan Energy Partners LP and Kinder Morgan Inc., has concluded a binding open season for a maximum of 145,000 Dth/d of available capacity on its South Mainline interstate natural gas transmission system. The approximately 750-mile South Mainline system extends from the Waha Hub in the Permian Basin of West Texas to California and serves markets in Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and northern Mexico. El Paso Electric Co., which is not affiliated with with the pipeline or its owners, has contracted with EPNG for an incremental 90,000 Dth/d of hourly firm capacity at maximum recourse rates under a 20-year term. El Paso Electric is currently served by EPNG. The new agreement will accommodate existing and planned additions to local generation by the utility. Expected in-service of the new capacity is Jan. 1, 2014.
Industry Brief
Enterprise Products Partners LP affiliate Panola Pipeline Co. LLC is holding a binding open season through Jan. 11 for a proposed expansion of the Carthage, TX, to Lufkin, TX, segment of its natural gas liquids (NGL) pipeline system. The Panola Pipeline runs 181 miles pipeline from a point near Carthage in Panola County and supports the Haynesville and Cotton Valley oil and gas production areas. It extends to points at Mont Belvieu in Chambers County, TX, enabling shippers to access the world’s largest NGL fractionation complex, including facilities owned and operated by Enterprise. The Panola expansion would be designed to accommodate about 15,000 b/d of incremental capacity, depending upon shipper interest, and would involve installing pumps and related equipment. The additional capacity would be available during the second quarter. For information, contact Chad Aldrich at (713) 381-6427 or cjaldrich@eprod.com.
Midcontinent, Rockies Lead Price Gains; Futures Tag Along
Physical gas prices rose on average a dime Tuesday as the Midwest and Midcontinent were bracing for the first major storm of the season. Rockies, Great Lakes and Midcontinent points all bounded higher. January futures rose 6 cents to $3.418, and February added 5.7 cents to $3.455. January crude oil gained 73 cents to $87.93/bbl.
Industry Briefs
The 2012 Atlantic Hurricane season, which officially ended Friday, produced 19 named storms, including 10 hurricanes, one of them major (Category 3 or higher), continuing a decades-long high-activity era in the Atlantic Basin, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The number of named storms this year was well above the average of 12 and the number of hurricanes was above the average of six, but the number of major hurricanes was below the average of three, according to NOAA, which classified the 2012 hurricane seas as above normal. It was the second consecutive year that the mid-Atlantic and Northeast suffered devastating impacts from a named storm. In 2011 it was Hurricane Irene, which turned out the lights on millions of East Coast residents and in doing so cut demand for natural gas by about 2.8 Bcf; this year the region was hit by Hurricane Sandy, which struck the New Jersey coastline Oct. 30. But it was the seventh consecutive year that no major hurricanes hit the United States. The only major hurricane was Hurricane Michael, a Category 3 storm that stayed over the open Atlantic. Hurricane Isaac was the only storm to cause significant disruption to energy interests in the Gulf of Mexico.
Industry Brief
Southern Star Central Gas Pipeline Inc. is holding a binding open season through Dec. 7 for expansion capacity proposed to carry production from the Granite Wash, Cleveland/Tonkawa and Mississippian Lime areas to markets in Oklahoma, Kansas and Missouri as well as other intrastate and interstate pipelines. The Straight Blackwell Expansion would involve expanding the capacity of Southern Star’s system beginning in Texas County, OK, along the Straight Blackwell Line (Line Segment 315) extending east to its Blackwell Compressor Station in Kay County, OK. Customer interest will dictate whether Southern Star pursues the expansion and will help define the final parameters of any project, the company said. Southern Star said if the project proceeds, it will, subject to Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approval, install the necessary facilities to serve all or a portion of the requested capacity. Expansion service could begin Oct. 1. For more information, contact Philip Rullman at (270) 852-4440, Jim Neukam at (270) 852-4665, Pat Coomes at (270) 852-4552, Robbie Clark at (270)-852-4577, or Dale Sanders at (270) 852-4666.