Sempra Energy Proposes U.S. Gulf Coast Terminal and Storage Facility

Responding to the growing need for accessible oil and petroleum storage and infrastructure along the U.S. Gulf Coast, Sempra Energy has proposed the construction of a marine petroleum terminal and storage facility in Port Arthur, Texas. The company has initiated an open-season solicitation for potential customers interested in purchasing terminal capacity.

The initial phase of the proposed Port Arthur Marine Terminal would provide storage and transportation assistance in the import and export of crude oil, liquid petroleum gas and related products. The terminal would serve the Gulf Coast region's refineries, pipelines and storage facilities.

"The storage and transportation services provided by this project complement Sempra Energy's other energy infrastructure-development efforts," said Neal E. Schmale, president and chief operating officer for Sempra Energy. "The proposed project matches our existing natural gas infrastructure siting and development expertise with the needs of petroleum producers and marketers in the region." Large ships carrying petroleum and other related products to the region's refineries are limited by long, inner-waterway voyages that are restricted to daylight hours. The proposed Sempra Energy terminal would allow for 24-hour marine terminal access with an initial, first-phase throughput of up to 500,000 barrels a day.

Non-binding indications of interest in capacity or a partnership in the proposed terminal will be accepted from Jan. 9 to Feb. 15 and should be directed to Marvin Ivey, commercial development director, Sempra Energy, 2500 Citywest Blvd., Suite 1800, Houston, Texas, 77042, or by calling (713) 361-7659, or emailing MIvey@SempraGlobal.com. Additional information on the marine terminal open season is available at: www.sempra.com/pamt. If sufficient indications of interest are received, the company will seek to finalize commercial agreements in late 2008. Permitting efforts for the project are underway and construction could begin in 2009. The terminal and storage facility, which would be located at the southern intersection of the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway and the Sabine-Neches Waterway, is expected to take two years to build.

The project's first phase, involving the construction of storage tanks and multi-ship berthing facilities, would require about 120 acres of the 2,900 acres Sempra Energy owns near Port Arthur. The Sempra Energy property also is the proposed site of a larger energy complex that includes the planned development of a liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal, Port Arthur LNG. That project, which will be capable of storing and regasifying up to 3 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day, will begin construction upon obtaining sufficient LNG supply and capacity agreements.