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First phase start-up of Destin Pipeline Co., L.L.C.'s Destin Pipeline system scheduled for this month comes a scant nine months after project sponsors won Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) approval to construct the on/offshore natural gas pipeline to meet transportation needs of producers in the eastern Gulf of Mexico. The 36-inch offshore pipeline-with the capacity to carry one billion cubic feet per day (BCF/d)-will be the largest in the eastern Gulf.
Key to the early start-up was a decision by sponsors to move the in service date up by six months to relieve the growing capacity constraints of operators moving gas to markets from eastern Gulf producing areas.
Destin Pipeline-owned jointly by Southern Natural Gas Co. (SNG), an affiliate of Sonat Inc., Tejas Energy LLC, an affiliate of Shell Oil Co., and Amoco Corp., began constructing the natural gas pipeline and gas processing plant in late December 1997.
When completed, the $460 million Destin Project will consist of a 210-mile pipeline system and a new onshore gas plant. The 36-inch offshore mainline will extend 76 miles from Main Pass Block 260 to a cryogenic gas plant under construction by Amoco and Tejas at Pascagoula, MS. From here, the 36-inch and 30-inch onshore segment will extend 134 miles into Mississippi, where it will interconnect with pipelines to deliver gas to markets served by the Koch Gateway, Florida Gas Transmission, Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line, Tennessee Gas Pipeline, and the SNG pipeline systems. Termination point of the line is in Enterprise, MS, at the SNG interconnect.
Initial Service
The completion of first-phase service will allow offshore shippers accessing the pipeline to transport gas to the Koch and Florida Gas delivery points in August. To accommodate the early start-up, limited plant operations are in place to separate and stabilize liquids that condense in the offshore pipeline.
Project Background
Douglas V. Krenz, President of Tejas Offshore Pipeline, L.L.C., said the most challenging aspect of the project has been accelerating the in-service date. "Our initial time frame, based on the needs that we saw early on, was to have the pipeline in service in February. Recognizing the growing constraints faced by producers moving their gas to markets through Louisiana, the partnership decided the pipeline needed to be in service as soon...