Open season for Mexico-Arizona gasline; could go into service as early as 2007

Gary Park

Petroleum News Calgary correspondent

Shipper interest is being solicited for a natural gas pipeline lateral from northwest Mexico to Phoenix, connecting proposed liquefied natural gas terminals with the Arizona market.

PG&E Gas Transmission Northwest and Sempra Energy International are staging the open season, which ends Nov. 10, to test interest in a 130-mile line that would feed into the existing North Baja Pipeline system.

The new lateral could go into service in 2007, but timing and capacity will hinge on shipper responses.

The current 220-mile North Baja pipeline was jointly developed by Sempra and PG&E, who respectively own the Mexican and U.S. segments.

From an interconnection with El Paso’s gas lines near Ehrenburg, Ariz., it crosses southern California and northern Baja California, ending near Tijuana, Mexico. It has approval to carry 500 million cubic feet per day and currently delivers gas from the U.S. Rocky Mountain region.

If gas starts flowing from the planned Mexican regasification terminals, the primary direction of flow on the North Baja system would likely be reversed.