Williams Seeks FERC Approval for Atlantic Sunrise Pipeline Expansion to Serve Growing Demand for Natural Gas in Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern U.S.
Williams (WMB) announced today that Transco has filed an application with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) seeking authorization for its Atlantic Sunrise expansion project, which would transport about 1.7 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day to markets in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern U.S.
Transco, the nation’s largest-volume and fastest-growing interstate natural gas pipeline system, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Williams Partners L.P. (WPZ), of which Williams owns approximately 60 percent, including the general-partner interest.
“Atlantic Sunrise is a vital piece of North American energy infrastructure needed to transport low-cost, abundant supplies of natural gas from the Marcellus producing region in Pennsylvania to hungry markets along the Atlantic Seaboard,” said Rory Miller, senior vice president of Williams Partners’ Atlantic-Gulf operating area. “Shippers have signed long-term commitments for the expansion’s entire capacity, which represents enough natural gas to serve approximately 7 million homes.”
Williams expects to place Atlantic Sunrise into service in the second half of 2017 as part of $4.8 billion in transmission projects planned to come online through 2017. Atlantic Sunrise adds to the list of Transco’s continued growth opportunities to connect increasing supplies of domestic natural gas with strong demand centers on the Eastern Seaboard from New York City to the far Southeast.
The project consists of compression and looping of the Transco Leidy line in Pennsylvania and various locations along its mainline between Pennsylvania and South Carolina in addition to a greenfield pipeline segment, referred to as the Central Penn Line, connecting the northeastern Marcellus producing region to the Transco mainline near Station 195 in southeastern Pennsylvania. The greenfield segment will be jointly owned by Transco and a third party.
Williams Partners’ net investment in the Atlantic Sunrise project is expected to be approximately $2.1 billion.
Transco delivers natural gas to customers through its 10,200-mile pipeline network whose mainline extends nearly 1,800 miles between South Texas and New York City. The system is a major provider of cost-effective natural gas services that reach U.S. markets in 12 Southeast and Atlantic Seaboard states, including major metropolitan areas in New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania.
About Williams
Williams (WMB) is a premier provider of large-scale infrastructure to connect North American natural gas and natural gas products to growing demand for cleaner fuel and feedstocks. Headquartered in Tulsa, Okla., Williams owns approximately 60 percent of Williams Partners L.P. (WPZ), including the general-partner interest. Williams Partners is an industry-leading, large-cap master limited partnership with operations across the natural gas value chain from gathering, processing and interstate transportation of natural gas and natural gas liquids to petchem production of ethylene, propylene and other olefins. With major positions in top U.S. supply basins and also in Canada, Williams Partners owns and operates more than 33,000 miles of pipelines system wide – including the nation’s largest volume and fastest growing pipeline – providing natural gas for clean-power generation, home heating and industrial use. Williams Partners’ operations touch approximately 30 percent of U.S. natural gas. www.williams.com
Portions of this document may constitute “forward-looking statements” as defined by federal law. Although the company believes any such statements are based on reasonable assumptions, there is no assurance that actual outcomes will not be materially different. Any such statements are made in reliance on the “safe harbor” protections provided under the Private Securities Reform Act of 1995. Additional information about issues that could lead to material changes in performance is contained in the company’s annual reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
