Dominion, Duke Energy, Piedmont Natural Gas, and AGL Resources have formed a joint venture to build and own the proposed 1.5-bcfd Atlantic Coast Pipeline. The 550-mile natural gas pipeline would move Marcellus and Utica shale gas from Harrison County, W.Va., southeast through Virginia, with an extension to Chesapeake, Va., and then south through central North Carolina to Robeson County.
The main pipeline would have a 42-in. OD in West Virginia and Virginia, and 36-in. OD in North Carolina. The lateral to Chesapeake-Hampton Roads, Va., would measure 20-in. in diameter. Dominion plans three compressor stations for the pipeline, one at its West Virginia starting point, one in Buckingham County, Va., and one near the Virginia-North Carolina border.
The partnership, called Atlantic Coast Pipeline LLC, will own the pipeline initially proposed by Dominion as the Southeast Reliability Project. It is designed in part to meet demand identified in requests for proposals last April by Duke Energy and Piedmont, and in June by Virginia Power Services Energy.
Dominion has begun surveying to determine pipeline routing and plans to make a pre-filing request with the US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission this fall on behalf of Atlantic Coast Pipeline. Dominion expects to file its FERC application in the summer 2015, receive the FERC Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity 1 year later, and begin construction shortly thereafter.
Joint-venture ownership stakes in the $4.5-5 billion pipeline are: Dominion, 45%; Duke Energy, 40%; Piedmont, 10%; and AGL Resources, 5%. Subsidiaries and affiliates of all four joint venture partners plan to be customers of the pipeline under 20-year contracts, pending regulatory approvals. PSNC Energy also plans to be a customer of the pipeline under a 20-year contract, pending regulatory approvals.
Contact Christopher E. Smith at [email protected].
