Open season announced for Freedom Trail pipeline expansion

Tennessee Gas Pipeline Co., a subsidiary of El Paso Corp., is holding a non-binding open season through Aug. 11 to assess market interest in additional firm capacity through its proposed Freedom Trail expansion project.

July 9, 2003

2 min read

By OGJ editors

HOUSTON, July 9 -- Tennessee Gas Pipeline Co., a subsidiary of El Paso Corp., is holding a non-binding open season through Aug. 11 to assess market interest in additional firm capacity through its proposed Freedom Trail expansion project.

That project is designed to increase mainline capacity by 50-150 MMcfd of natural gas on Tennessee's Line 200 in New York and Massachusetts, with up to 40,000 hp additional compression and as much as 40 miles of new pipeline looped along existing right of way. It would enable customers in the Northeastern US to access various supply points along Tennessee's system, including market and supply area storage, the Gulf of Mexico, and Tennessee's Niagara, NY, interconnect with the system of TransCanada Pipelines Ltd., Calgary, said company officials.

The project's incremental capacity could provide service to New England as well as New York City and Long Island via deliveries to existing and proposed downstream pipelines directly serving these markets. It is scheduled to begin service in 2006.

Company officials see potential opportunities in those markets. "While the Northeast experienced one of the coldest winters in recent years, we expect summer natural gas demand also will be at record levels due to additional gas-fired power generation coming online and historically low storage levels in the area," said Stephen C. Beasley, president of Tennessee Gas Pipeline. "The Freedom Trail expansion project would enable Tennessee to minimize environmental impact by using existing pipeline easements and upgrading existing compressor stations, while delivering competitively priced natural gas to these markets."