FERC approves Northwest Pipeline pre-filed rate settlement

TULSA, Okla. - Williams Partners L.P. (WPZ) on April 27 announced that its Northwest Pipeline system received approval from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on a pre-filed rate settlement.

Northwest filed a Stipulation and Settlement Agreement with the FERC on March 15.

The supporting or non-opposing customers named in the settlement represent approximately 99.5 percent of Northwest's long-term firm transportation and storage capacity.

Williams (WMB) owns approximately 69 percent of Williams Partners, including the general-partner interest.

"We're pleased to have reached a settlement with our customers. We appreciate the long-standing relationships with them that allowed us to work cooperatively and reach a timely quick settlement," said Randy Barnard, senior vice president of the partnership's interstate gas pipeline business.

The settlement is based on an annual cost of service of $466.5 million and established a new general system firm transportation rate of $0.44 per dekatherm, a 7.4 percent increase over the current rate. New rates will become effective Jan. 1, 2013. Northwest can file another rate case in three years and must file within five years. The settlement is in line with Williams Partners' and Williams' earnings and cash flow guidance for 2013 and 2014.

Williams Partners seeks FERC OK for more natural gas service to Northeast

TULSA, Okla. - Williams Partners L.P. (NYSE: WPZ) announced on Dec. 14 that its Transco pipeline has filed an application with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to provide 250,000 dekatherms per day of incremental, year-round firm natural gas transportation capacity to serve growing markets in the Northeast by November 2013.

The Northeast Supply Link project is designed to expand certain segments of the existing Transco pipeline in Pennsylvania and New Jersey to transport robust domestic supplies of natural gas to growing markets in the Northeast.

"Because of its existing location, the Transco pipeline is well positioned to connect vast domestic natural gas supplies with growing markets in New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania," said Randy Barnard, president of Williams' natural gas pipeline business. "This increased access will not only enhance reliability of natural gas service, but should contribute to a more stable gas and electric pricing environment in markets served by the project."

The proposed expansion will primarily consist of approximately 12 miles of new pipe at various locations in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, in addition to a new 25,000-horsepower compressor facility in Essex County, N.J., along with other facility modifications. The capital cost of the project is estimated to be $341 million.

Most of the new pipe will be installed either entirely within or parallel to existing pipeline and utility rights-of-way. The new Essex County compressor facility will be constructed on land already owned by Williams. All other compression-related activities will be performed entirely within existing compressor station facilities.

If approved, compressor station construction would begin in November 2012 with pipeline construction following in the spring of 2013.

Corruption at FERC: Lawyer charges pipelines given freedom to profiteer

Thomson Reuters News & Insight columnist David Cay Johnston on Oct. 17 reported that a fourth of the nation’s oil pipelines last year earned excessive profits, at up to seven times the rates allowed by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC).

The charge appears in an explosive analysis prepared by a former general counsel for FERC.

R. Gordon Gooch, the former counsel, alleges in his Oct. 3 study, that Sunoco’s Mid-Valley Pipeline, which carries crude oil from Texas to Michigan, earned a 55 percent return on assets. That is seven times its authorized profit margin, based on a calculation derived from an accounting report the company filed with FERC.

Three other regulated monopoly pipelines earned more than 40 percent on their assets, while another three earned more than 30 percent, an examination of their FERC filings by the Reuters news agency shows.

To put that level of profitability into context, overall nonfinancial businesses earned a 6.7 percent after-tax profit on their assets last year, the latest Bureau of Economic Affairs report shows.

EQT gets federal OK to build Sunrise Pipeline in Marcellus Shale

PITTSBURGH, Pa. - EQT Corp., one of the Marcellus Shale region's largest natural gas exploration, production and midstream companies, on Sept. 21 announced that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has given its subsidiary, Equitrans, L.P., notice to proceed with construction of a new natural gas pipeline in Pennsylvania and West Virginia.

As part of its ongoing Marcellus capacity expansion, Equitrans will begin construction of its project Sunrise, which is comprised of the installation of approximately 41.5 miles of 24-inch-diameter pipeline and 2.7 miles of 16-inch-diameter pipeline running from Wetzel County, W. Va., to Greene County, Pa., as well as a new compressor station near Jefferson in Greene County.

The Sunrise pipeline system will generally parallel existing Equitrans facilities, thereby reducing its environmental footprint, and is expected to be operational before summer 2012.

The Sunrise Project will expand Equitrans' existing mainline transmission system to address the rapid development of natural gas from both the liquids rich and dry areas of the Marcellus Shale formation in the central Appalachian Basin. The pipelines interconnect with MarkWest's Mobley processing complex will provide producers a cost-effective option to transport liquids-rich natural gas to pipelines serving the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern markets as well as local distribution companies and on-system storage.

"We are excited to begin construction of the Sunrise project; when completed, the pipeline will provide the critical infrastructure necessary to facilitate continued development of Marcellus acreage in northern West Virginia," said Randy Crawford, senior vice president and president, Midstream, Distribution and Commercial.

Williams Partners LP gets approval to expand Transco pipeline

TULSA, Okla. - Natural gas distributor Williams Partners L.P. has received regulatory approval to expand a pipeline to the Mid-Atlantic region of the U.S.

The company said on July 11 that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has approved expanding the pipeline to serve customers in Virginia and Maryland.

The expansion will add about 142,000 dekatherms of incremental firm natural gas capacity to Williams Partners' 10,000-mile Transco pipeline system. A dekatherm is a measurement of how much heat can be generated from natural gas. The Transco pipeline has a total capacity of 9.6 million decatherms per day, and carries gas throughout the northeastern and southeastern United States.

The project will connect with East Tennessee Natural Gas to provide fuel for power generation and local distribution customers, a Williams news release stated.

The company said it plans to have the expansion completed by November 2012.

The project will cost about $55 million and add about three miles of new pipeline and include the upgrade of compressor facilities in Virginia.

Williams Cos. Inc. is the general partner and holds the controlling interest in Williams Partners. Williams Partners has a Zacks #4 Rank (short-term Sell),