Enterprise Products Partners LP (EPP) and Enbridge Inc. executed a letter of intent (LOI) to jointly develop a deepwater crude oil terminal in the Gulf of Mexico capable of fully loading very large crude carriers (VLCC), focusing their combined efforts on Enterprise’s Sea Port Oil Terminal (SPOT) deepwater crude oil terminal.
Under terms of the LOI, EPP and Enbridge agreed to negotiate an equity participation rights agreement whereby, subject to SPOT receiving a deepwater port license, an Enbridge affiliate could acquire an ownership interest in SPOT Terminal Services LLC, which owns SPOT.
The SPOT project consists of onshore and offshore facilities, including a fixed platform roughly 30 nautical miles off the Brazoria County, Tex., coast in about 115 ft of water. SPOT is designed to load VLCC at rates of roughly 85,000 bbl/hr (~2 million b/d). Construction of SPOT is subject to obtaining the required approvals and licenses from the Federal Maritime Administration.
EPP and Chevron USA Inc. signed an agreement in July 2019 covering transportation, storage, and marine terminal services in relation to SPOT, including expansion of crude oil logistics between the Permian basin and Houston (OGJ Online, July 31, 2019).
