Enbridge increases stake in possible Arctic gas delivery system

Enbridge Inc., Canada’s second largest energy pipeline company, has tightened its hold on Alliance Pipeline Ltd., which could be a major delivery option to the U.S. Midwest for gas from either the Mackenzie Delta or Alaska.

The Calgary-based company announced today that, along with Fort Chicago Energy Partners, it has bought out another U.S. owner of Alliance.

The combined C$406 million deal for Duke Energy Corp’s 11.8 percent stake in Alliance will leave Enbridge and Fort Chicago as joint 50-50 owners of Alliance, a 36-inch diameter pipeline with capacity of 1.55 billion cubic feet per day from northwestern British Columbia to Chicago.

Patrick Daniel, president and chief executive officer of Enbridge, said the new owners will simplify the governance and flexibility of Alliance and “pursue a variety of opportunities to enhance the value of this assets to both shippers and owners.”

He said Alliance is expected to “play a significant role in moving northern gas to market later in the decade.”

Enbridge operates the only oil and gas pipelines north of the 60th parallel in Canada and, although it has kept a low-key profile in discussions about a Mackenzie Valley pipeline it has said that both the valley and Alaska Highway projects are technically viable if they proceed as separate ventures.