MPLX, MarkWest Plot $2 Billion in Projects Across Permian, Marcellus, Other Hot Spots

Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--MPLX LP (NYSE:MPLX) (Findlay, Ohio) gathered, processed and fractionated record levels of natural gas volumes in third-quarter 2018, bolstering its profits and reinforcing confidence in its long-haul pipeline and fee-based businesses. Industrial Info is tracking nearly $2 billion in active projects involving MPLX and its subsidiaries, including MarkWest Energy Partners LP, which has a slew of projects in development in two of the busiest U.S. locales for energy.

Click on the image at right to see a graph detailing MPLX projects, by U.S. state.

West Virginia is home to nearly half of the total investment value attributed to MarkWest, including two facilities that are seeing major expansions: the Sherwood Cryogenic Natural Gas Processing Complex in West Union and the Mobley Cryogenic Natural Gas Processing Complex in Smithfield. Each of the Sherwood projects are under construction and are set to wrap up in the coming months; the Mobley projects remain in their planning phases, where plenty of factors could change or eliminate the projected spending:

• $200 million Phase X expansion at Sherwood, which will increase capacity from 1.8 billion to 2 billion cubic feet per day; see project report
• $200 million Phase XI expansion at Sherwood, which will increase capacity from 2 billion to 2.2 billion cubic feet per day; see project report
• $200 million C2 fractionation train addition at Sherwood, which will increase fractionation capacity from 20,000 barrels per day (BBL/d) of natural gas liquids (NGL) to 36,000 BBL/d; see project report
• $100 million Phase VI expansion at Mobley, which will increase capacity from 920 million to 1.1 billion cubic feet per day; see project report
• $100 million Phase VII expansion at Mobley, which will increase capacity from 1.1 billion to 1.3 billion cubic feet per day; see project report

Southwestern Pennsylvania is another key part of the Appalachian Region that is being explored by MPLX, with the $120 million Harmon Creek Cryogenic Natural Gas Processing Complex near Washington, Pennsylvania, under construction and set to wrap up toward the end of the year, along with the $30 million addition of a de-ethanizer unit. The two-train facility will process up to 200 million standard cubic feet per day of natural gas and produce (via the de-ethanizer) 20,000 BBL/d of NGL from the Marcellus Shale. For more information, see Industrial Info's project reports on the processing plant and de-ethanizer unit.

MPLX and MarkWest also are among the companies developing assets in the prosperous Delaware Basin of West Texas and southeastern New Mexico. Earlier this year, MPLX and MarkWest completed work at the Argo Natural Gas Processing Plant in Pecos, Texas, which is processing 200 million standard cubic feet per day from the basin, and they are now turning to the estimated $125 million Tornado Natural Gas Processing Plant and its $120 million gas-gathering system in Mentone, Texas. The Tornado plant will process the same amount and will be served by the 150-mile pipeline system. For more information, see Industrial Info's project reports on the processing plant and gathering system, as well as the Argo plant.

The Tornado gathering system is currently designed to be supported by four compressor stations, each valued at $30 million, to be located in:

• Loving, New Mexico; see project report
• northern Mentone, Texas; see project report
• Kermit, Texas; see project report
• eastern Mentone, Texas; see project report

Each would involve the installation of one to three engines. The Loving and northern Mentone facilities would begin construction in early 2019, and the Kermit and eastern Mentone facilities would begin construction in early 2020.

"Our team continued to successfully bring multiple assets online throughout the year to match production growth," said Gary R. Heminger, the chief executive officer of MPLX, in a quarterly earnings-related conference call. "This has allowed us to take advantage of the strong levels of demand across all regions where we operate."

MPLX's net income for the third quarter stood at $516 million, compared with $217 million in the same period last year. Capital expenditures were reported to be $613 million, compared with $414 million in third-quarter 2017, not including acquisitions.

Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, six offices in North America and 12 international offices, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle™, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities. Follow IIR on: Facebook - Twitter - LinkedIn. For more information on our coverage, send inquiries to info@industrialinfo.com or visit us online at http://www.industrialinfo.com/.