US firm Enable Midstream Partners has received approval from the federal regulators to build its Gulf Run pipeline which will feed the Golden Pass LNG export plant under construction in Texas.
Enable said in a statement on Wednesday it won the approval to build and operate the pipeline from the US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC).
The project would transport natural gas from some of the most prolific natural gas producing regions in the US, including the Haynesville, Marcellus, Utica, and Barnett shales but also the Mid-Continent region to the US Gulf Coast.
Enable said the project has a 20-year commitment for 1.1 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) from cornerstone shipper Golden Pass LNG.
In addition, the planned 42-inch pipeline provides for approximately 1.7 Bcf/d of capacity, allowing for upside potential beyond Golden Pass LNG’s commitment, it said.
The developer expects the project to cost about $540 million.
Moreover, the contractor bidding process is underway, and Enable expects to place the pipeline into service in late 2022.
State-owned LNG giant Qatar Petroleum owns a 70 percent stake in the Golden Pass LNG project while US energy firm ExxonMobil has a 30 percent share.
Golden Pass LNG has earlier this year received approval from FERC to boost capacity at its plant under construction by 2.5 mtpa to a total of 18.1 mtpa.
With the approval, each of the three trains will have a capacity of about 6 mtpa of LNG. This equals to 0.79 Bcf per day of natural gas.
The project operator aims to start the first train in 2024 with the second unit expected to follow six-to-eight months after that.