Equitrans Upbeat on MVP Completion, Boosts 2023 Capex

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Equitrans Midstream (NYSE:ETRN) (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) expects to invest more in capital projects for 2023, fueled heavily by its optimism that its Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) finally will be brought online, following years of environmental and legal hurdles. The company made strides on several other major projects as well, including an expansion of its Ohio Valley Connector pipeline. Industrial Info is tracking more than $2.5 billion worth of active projects from Equitrans, about two-thirds of which is attributed to projects under construction.

Click on the image at right for a graph detailing Equitrans' active projects, by U.S. state.

Equitrans has faced years of delays in developing the 303-mile MVP pipeline, which is designed to carry up to 2 billion cubic feet per day of natural gas from northern West Virginia to southern Virginia. But in a quarterly conference call reviewing the company's 2022 results and looking forward to its 2023 plans, Chief Executive Officer Tom Karam said he expects to receive clearance from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service later this month, with other permits likely to be approved this spring or summer. He also expects the U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) will lift its stop-work order on MVP in the coming months.

"This timing will allow for mobilization of construction crews in the summer of 2023 which will position us to bring MVP into service in 2023," Karam said in the earnings call. In a related press release, Equitrans says it expects capital expenditures (capex) for 2023 to total between $970 million and $1.09 billion, with between $610 million and $660 million going toward MVP, assuming the pipeline begins service in the second half of the year.

If MVP does not begin service in 2023, the company acknowledges capex will total between $510 million and $630 million, with between $150 million and $210 million spent on MVP. For full-year 2022, Equitrans' capex totaled $549 million, with about $199 million going toward MVP.

Major segments set to wrap up this year, according to Equitrans, include a 104-mile stretch from a transmission and storage system in Wetzel County to Braxton County, West Virginia, and a 199-mile stretch from Braxton County to Pittsylvania County, Virginia. It will be supported by new compressor stations in Flatwoods, Smithfield and Meadow Bridge, West Virginia, all of which are projected to wrap up around the same time as the pipeline segments.

Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Oil & Gas Project Database can read detailed project reports on the pipeline within West Virginia, the West Virginia-to-Virginia line and the Flatwoods, Smithfield and Meadow Bridge compressor stations.

MVP is a joint venture among Equitrans and affiliates of NextEra Energy Incorporated (NYSE:NEE) (Juno Beach, Florida), Consolidated Edison Incorporated (NYSE:ED) (New York, New York), AltaGas Limited (TSX:ALA) (Calgary, Alberta) and RGC Resources Incorporated (NASDAQ:RGCO) (Roanoke, Virginia).

Equitrans chalked up a major win last month when FERC issued a favorable environmental impact statement (EIS) for the company's Ohio Valley Connector Expansion Project, which will add 350 million standard cubic feet per day of capacity on the Ohio Valley Connector pipeline, for a total of 1.2 billion standard cubic feet per day. Equitrans aims to bolster the throughput on several of its pipeline systems, including the Rockies Express Pipeline and the Rover Pipeline, through interconnections with the expanded Ohio Valley Connector system.

As part of the project, Equitrans is adding turbines at compressor stations near Mannington, West Virginia, in New Freeport, Pennsylvania, and in Clarington, Ohio, while replacing outdated equipment, and making small-scale pipeline additions near Mannington and New Freeport, which will connect larger lines and add discharge capacity. The company expects the new capacity will meet growing demand in key markets in the mid-continent and Gulf Coast regions.

In its quarterly press release, Equitrans said it expects to receive all necessary approvals in the first half of 2023 and is targeting the incremental capacity to be in-service during the first half of 2024.

Subscribers can read detailed reports on the compressor station projects near Mannington, in New Freeport and in Clarington, and the pipeline additions near Mannington and New Freeport.

Subscribers to Industrial Info's GMI Project Database can click here for a full list of detailed reports for projects mentioned in this article, and click here for a full list of related plant profiles.

Subscribers can click here for a full list of reports for active projects from Equitrans.

Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) platform helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking more than 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 trillion (USD).