Mitchell Energy & Development Corp., The Woodlands, Tex., said Monday it's completed two pipeline system expansion projects in North Texas, enabling the firm to boost its natural gas sales and NGL production.
Mitchell added looping to 13.5 miles of a main gathering line serving the Bridgeport processing plant, plus 3,000 hp of compression. The additions raised gathering capacity along this line to more than 40 MMcfd.
Gross gas production in this area jumped about 30 MMcfd a week after the project was completed. Because the gas is rich in natural gas liquids, NGL output also has increased by about 1,000 b/d.
Some of the incremental gas volume is being processed at two nearby plants, pending completion late this year of the 100 MMcfd expansion of Mitchell's Bridgeport plant.
The second project doubled the capacity of a field gas sales outlet to 80 MMcfd. The project consisted of looping a gathering line and the addition of 1,200 hp of compression.
This outlet allows sales of relatively dry gas production from the southeastern flank of the Barnett shale play directly into the intrastate market. Gas sales through this outlet have grown to about 75 MMcfd since they began a year ago, reflecting Mitchell's stepped-up development drilling in the southeast sector of the play (OGJ Online, July 19, 2000).
"These projects will help us keep up with rapidly increasing gas production from the Barnett shale and enable us to fully load the expanded Bridgeport plant by the end of next year's first quarter," said Allen J. Tarbutton, president of Mitchell's gas services division.
Company gas sales now total 340 MMcfd, up 11% from July's 306 MMcfd, and are on target for volume growth exceeding 20% for the year. Total NGL production has increased to more than 53,000 b/d from 51,000 b/d in July. When fully loaded, the Bridgeport plant expansion should add another 7,000 b/d of NGL output.