Williams, Targa Resources team on NGL pipeline projects

Williams and Targa Resources Corp. agreed on new natural gas liquids (NGL) pipeline projects that will link the Conway, Kansas, and Mont Belvieu, Texas, markets.

Williams will build a 188-mile NGL pipeline, called the Bluestem Pipeline, from its fractionator in Conway, Kansas, and the southern terminus of Overland Pass Pipeline to an interconnect with Targa’s Grand Prix NGL Pipeline in Kingfisher County, Oklahoma. Targa will construct a 110-mile extension of Grand Prix from southern Oklahoma into the Sooner Trend (oil field), Anadarko (basin), Canadian and Kingfisher (counties) (STACK) region of central Oklahoma, where it will connect with Williams’ new Bluestem Pipeline.

“Expanding our NGL pipeline business to interconnect with Targa’s strategically-positioned Grand Prix Pipeline will provide Williams and our customers with access to Mont Belvieu while opening up additional markets for Conway,” says Alan Armstrong, president and CEO of Williams. “Additionally, this delivers a long-term infrastructure solution for NGLs from our Opal, Echo Springs, Willow Creek and Rocky Mountain Midstream processing complexes while also creating a platform for growth – offering us the opportunity to gain incremental downstream revenues as we expand our G&P business.”

Targa CEO Joe Bob Perkins adds, “The further expansion of our Grand Prix NGL Pipeline into the STACK is an attractive extension of a highly strategic asset for Targa and will direct significant incremental NGLs over the long term from Williams and other third parties to Grand Prix and to our downstream assets in Mont Belvieu and Galena Park.”

In connection with the project, Williams has committed to Targa significant volumes, which Targa will transport on Grand Prix and fractionate at Targa’s Mont Belvieu facilities. Williams will also have an initial option to purchase a 20 percent equity interest in one of Targa’s recently announced new fractionation trains 7 or 8 in Mont Belvieu.

Targa’s Grand Prix extension will have an initial capacity of about 120,000 barrels per day and is expected to cost about $200 million. Targa and Williams are targeting an in-service date of first-quarter 2021 for both the Grand Prix extension and the new Bluestem Pipeline, respectively. As part of the project, Williams also plans to expand the DJ Lateral of the Overland Pass Pipeline and make improvements at its Conway NGL storage facility. Williams expects its investment in the NGL logistics projects to be $350 million to $400 million.