Canadian energy giant Enbridge (ENB) is building two pipelines to service a new liquefied
natural gas facility in the U.S.
The Calgary-based pipeline company announced that it will transport 1.5 billion cubic feet per
day of natural gas from basins in the U.S. to Venture Global's recently sanctioned Plaquemines
LNG plant in Louisiana.
American LNG company Venture Global announced that it will proceed with the first phase of
construction on the Plaquemines LNG facility after it secured $13.2 billion U.S. in financing for
the project.
Enbridge said the two new pipelines that will supply the LNG facility are the 43-kilometre Gator
Express Meter Project, expected to be operational in 2023, and the 4.8-kilometre Venice
Extension Project, expected to be in service by 2024. The estimated cost for the two new
pipelines is $400 million U.S.
The announcement comes as U.S. benchmark natural gas prices top $9 U.S. per mmBTU amid
concerns about global energy security and the war in Ukraine.
The Plaquemines facility, which will have an export capacity of up to 20 million metric tonnes of
LNG per year when fully operational, will be the fifth LNG facility on the U.S. Gulf Coast served
by Enbridge pipelines.
In addition to liquefied natural gas, Enbridge is banking on increased crude oil exports from the
U.S. Gulf Coast. Last fall, Enbridge acquired U.S.-based terminal and logistics company Moda
Midstream Operating for $3 billion U.S.
As part of that deal, Enbridge acquired North America's largest crude export terminal, the
Ingleside Energy Center located near Corpus Christi, Texas, which handles 25% of all U.S. Gulf
Coast crude exports.
Enbridge stock is up 18% this year at $$58.59 per share.
