Enterprise, Anadarko and DCP Midstream to build new NGL pipeline

HOUSTON, Texas, THE WOODLANDS, Texas and DENVER, Colo. - Enterprise Products Partners L.P., Anadarko Petroleum Corp. and DCP Midstream, LLC on April 12 announced an agreement to design and construct a new natural gas liquids pipeline that will originate in the Denver-Julesburg Basin in Weld County, Colo., and extend approximately 435 miles to Skellytown, Texas, in Carson County.

Each party will hold a one-third interest.

The new Front Range Pipeline, with connections to the Mid-America Pipeline system and the recently announced Texas Express Pipeline, will help producers in the DJ Basin maximize the value of their NGL production by providing reliable takeaway capacity and market access to the Gulf Coast, the largest NGL market in the United States.

Depending on shipper interest to an upcoming binding open commitment period, initial capacity on Front Range is expected to be approximately 150,000 barrels per day (b/d), which can be readily expanded to approximately 230,000 b/d.

Enterprise will construct and operate the pipeline, which is expected to begin service in the fourth quarter of 2013.

"We are very pleased to partner with Anadarko and DCP on this project, which will extend Enterprise's integrated pipeline network into the liquids-rich DJ Basin to address the area's NGL transportation constraints, providing flow assurance and market choice for producers," said Michael A. Creel, Enterprise president and chief executive officer.

"With the success and significant growth expected in Anadarko's liquids-rich Wattenberg HZ (horizontal) program, Front Range will provide needed access to premium markets, which enables us to capture the highest wellhead netbacks. When combined with the recent announcement by Western Gas Partners, LP to construct the Lancaster Plant in the DJ Basin, Front Range provides significant value to Anadarko and its stakeholders," said Danny Rea, vice-president of midstream for Anadarko.

Bill Waldheim, president of DCP Midstream's NGLs, Gas and Crude Oil Logistics business unit, said, "The DJ Basin for several years has been an attractive liquids-rich resource. Now, with the introduction of horizontal drilling and this new phase of oil-driven development, the volumes and the infrastructure needs are accelerating. In anticipation of growing volumes, DCP remains focused on the liquids transportation needs of the basin. Given the plant development under way in the DJ, DCP has a strategic need to provide open access transportation services to the higher-valued Mt. Belvieu market."

Enterprise, Enbridge and Anadarko to develop Texas Express Pipeline

HOUSTON & THE WOODLANDS, Texas - Enterprise Products Partners L.P., Enbridge Energy Partners, L.P. and Anadarko Petroleum Corp. on March 6 announced that shippers have executed long-term contracts for capacity on the Texas Express Pipeline (TEP) being developed by the joint venture.

The shippers, which include unaffiliated shippers, have tendered 15-year, ship-or-pay transportation agreements containing volume commitments that total 232,000 barrels per day (b/d). The contracts also include an option provision allowing shippers to increase their volume commitment.

Originating near Skellytown in Carson County, Texas, the 20-inch diameter TEP mainline will extend approximately 580 miles to Enterprise's natural gas liquids (NGL) fractionation and storage complex at Mont Belvieu, Texas, and will provide access to other third-party facilities in the area.

The pipeline will provide much-needed takeaway capacity for producers in West Texas, the Rocky Mountains, southern Oklahoma and the Mid-continent area, giving them access to the largest NGL market along the Gulf Coast and the opportunity to maximize the value of their NGLs. Production from the Rockies, Permian Basin and Mid-continent will be delivered into TEP through Enterprise's existing Mid-America Pipeline System (MAPL) which extends north through Oklahoma into Conway, Kansas, and south into the Permian Basin.

"This joint venture with Enbridge and Anadarko brings together partners with unique and complementary strengths to provide an industry solution that addresses the need for flow assurance and market choices for producers, as well as reliable supplies of price-advantaged, natural gas-derived feedstocks to meet the increasing demand of petrochemical operators," said Michael A. Creel, president and chief executive officer of Enterprise's general partner. "For Enterprise, this project is a 'bolt-on' expansion that enhances the value of our integrated midstream network of assets, including the pipelines that will feed TEP, as well as our fractionators, storage facilities and distribution network at Mont Belvieu, which will be fed by the new pipeline."

The joint venture also includes two new NGL gathering systems. The first will connect TEP to natural gas processing plants in the Anadarko/Granite Wash production area located in the Texas Panhandle and Western Oklahoma. The second NGL gathering system will connect the new pipeline to Barnett Shale natural gas processing plants located in Central Texas. Wider access to multiple production areas, in addition to a competitive transportation fee structure, makes this an attractive option for producers and natural gas processors. Enterprise will construct and operate the pipeline, while Enbridge will construct and operate the new gathering systems.