Permian Gas Pipeline Starts Up

The new Gulf Coast Express Pipeline (GCX) has begun full commercial service, delivering natural gas from the Permian Basin to the Texas Gulf Coast, a Kinder Morgan, Inc. (KMI) spokesperson confirmed to Rigzone Wednesday.

According to a written statement Tuesday afternoon from KMI, GCX – fully subscribed under long-term contracts – carries gas from the Waha area in West Texas to Agua Dulce near Corpus Christi. The pipeline, which boasts approximately 2 billion cubic feet per day of capacity, will help to relieve Permian gas takeaway constraints and reduce flaring, noted KMI, whose Kinder Morgan Texas Pipeline subsidiary operates and owns a 34-percent interest in GCX.

Other GCX owners include Altus Midstream, DCP Midstream and an affiliate of Targa Resources. KMI’s website states that committed GCX shippers include DCP and Targa as well as Apache Corp., Pioneer Natural Resources Co. and Exxon Mobil Corp. subsidiary XTO Energy.

“We are pleased to place GCX in service safety and ahead of schedule for our customers, helping to unlock tremendous value for the State of Texas,” noted Sital Mody, president of Kinder Morgan Natural Gas Midstream.

When KMI and its partners took their final investment decision on GCX in late 2017, they had anticipated an in-service date for next month.

Mody also noted that more than 3,000 contractors working more than 6 million contractor hours contributed to GCX’s construction with no major safety incident.

“With natural gas supplies projected to rise over the next 20 years from supply basins such as the Permian, our strong network of pipelines provides the ability to connect this supply to the growing markets along the Gulf Coast,” said Mody.

By the end of 2020, KMI expects to place into service another gas pipeline linking West Texas to the Gulf Coast: the Permian Highway Pipeline.

To contact the author, email mveazey@rigzone.com.