Infrastructure

Tallgrass Energy Partners LPunit BNN Water Solutions has closed on the $75 million acquisition of Whiting Oil & Gas Corp.’s Redtail Saltwater Disposal and Fresh Water Transportation and Storage System in Weld County, CO. It has a fresh water delivery and storage system and a produced water gathering and disposal system, including 62 miles of pipeline along with associated fresh water ponds and disposal wells. The purchase agreement with Whiting includes a five-year fresh water service contract and a nine-year gathering and disposal contract, each of which includes annual minimum volume commitments. Whiting also dedicated 148,000 acres to the Redtail system. Tallgrass expects the acquisition to be immediately accretive to unitholders. “Tallgrass intends to continue growing its water services business in the Rockies, Permian, Eagle Ford and other production areas to help companies that are seeking cost reductions in fresh water, disposal, recycling and general water management,” said Tallgrass COO Bill Moler.

Upon consideration of revised and additional data, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has taken back its criticism of the Sabal Trail Pipeline, a project of Spectra Energy Corp. and NextEra Energy Inc.

FERC on Thursday granted American Midstream LLC authorization to construct and operate the Natchez Pipeline. It will replace the 89-year-old Midla pipeline system in Louisiana and Mississippi.

The U.S. Forest Service (USFS) has told FERC that it still has several concerns regarding the route of the proposed Atlantic Coast Pipeline (ACP), specifically its plans to traverse the Monongahela and George Washington national forests.

A unit of Las Vegas-based Southwest Gas Corp. on Monday received FERC authorization to place into service before the end of this year a new 35.2-mile, eight-inch diameter natural gas pipeline lateral in the far northeast corner of Nevada in Elko with new interconnections to the interstate Ruby Pipeline LLC, running from Wyoming to the Oregon-California border.

Natural gas vehicle (NGV) engine technology provider Vancouver, BC-based Westport Innovations Inc. and Des Plaines, IL-based Gas Technology Institute (GTI) have received a total of $900,000 from two California sources to pursue advances in Westport’s enhanced spark ignited (ESI) natural gas engine.

The Sabal Trail pipeline project scored a regulatory victory last Friday when an administrative law judge (ALJ) recommended that Florida regulators approve a permit for the pipeline over the objection of environmentalists.

Calling it a “carbon-polluting power grab,” Earthjustice on Monday filed an appeal challenging the California Public Utilities Commission’s (CPUC) approval of a key agreement to repower an existing natural gas-fired generation plant site in Carlsbad, CA.

Officials at Sempra Energy’s Southern California Gas Co. (SoCalGas) utility on Wednesday said pre-winter underground storage operations continue unhindered by the seven-week-old leaking storage well at its 86 Bcf capacity Aliso Canyon facility 40 miles north of Los Angeles (see Daily GPI,Nov. 12).