Enbridge on Rocky Mountain high

Gary Park

Petroleum News Calgary correspondent

Calgary-based pipeline company Enbridge, eager to take a larger role in the natural gas sector, is weighing a new pipeline from the U.S. Rocky Mountains to Chicago.

President and Chief Executive Officer Pat Daniel told a conference call July 30 that preliminary discussions are under way with the industry and state of Wyoming “to garner support for the project.”

He said “very approximate numbers” point to a 1,000-mile line, carrying 1 billion cubic feet per day and costing $1.2 billion.

Daniel noted that a direct line from the Rockies to the Chicago hub would help bring the price of gas from the region closer to that from other North American producing regions that have ample shipping capacity.

There is no indication when a decision might be made or when a pipeline could come into service. But the Rockies is one of the few regions in the Lower 48 that offers any hope of substantial gains in production, especially if the U.S. government bows to industry pressure and allows greater access to federal lands.

One of the leading boosters of the Rockies is Canadian independent EnCana which reported July 29 that its second-quarter sales from Wyoming and Colorado were up 63 percent from a year ago to 698 million cubic feet per day from 428 million cubic feet per day.

“Our U.S. Rockies business continues to deliver very strong growth,” said Roger Biemans, president of EnCana’s USA Region.

“We are currently producing more than 700 million cubic feet per day and expect to continue double-digit production growth for years to come.”

Daniel also said Enbridge is exploring opportunities in the handling of imported liquefied natural gas and is working on a proposed C$150 million gas liquids pipeline from the Mackenzie Delta to Norman Wells, Northwest Territories.

If Delta gas development proceeds, one proposal involves a separate liquids line to Norman Wells, where it would feed into Enbridge’s underutilized crude pipeline to northern Alberta.