NEW YORK, May 26 (Reuters) - Sempra Energy Global Enterprises said Wednesday it began an open season for
its Pine Prairie Energy Center, a new salt-cavern natural gas storage facility
in Evangeline Parish, Louisiana. Shippers are invited to demonstrate interest in
storing natural gas at the proposed facility during
Pine Prairie Energy Center will offer firm storage services as well as interruptible hub services from its eight interstate and three intrastate pipeline interconnects. Interstate pipeline interconnections to the facility include: ANR Pipeline Southeast and ML-2; Columbia Gulf Mainline; Florida Gas Zone 2; Tennessee Gas Zone L and 800 Leg; Texas Eastern WLA Access Zone; Texas Gas Zone SL; and Transco Zone 3. The intrastate interconnections include: Cypress Gas Pipeline, Gulf South Pipeline and Louisiana Intrastate Gas. Due to their high deliverability rates, salt-cavern storage facilities like Pine Prairie provide important services for power generators, pipelines, utilities, energy merchants and liquefied natural gas (LNG) regasification terminal operators throughout the United States.
In early July 2004, the Pine Prairie Energy Center will seek authorization from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to construct and operate the facility under Section 7(c) of the Natural Gas Act, including market-based rate treatment. In addition, Sempra Energy Global Enterprises is in the final stages of completing Bluewater Gas Storage, a 27 Bcf storage facility in St. Clair, Michigan. Sempra Energy Global Enterprises is the umbrella for Sempra Energy's growth businesses, including Sempra Energy LNG, Sempra Energy Trading, Sempra Energy International, Sempra Energy Resources, and Sempra Energy Solutions.
Sempra Energy is based in San Diego.