North American Oil & Gas Terminals Buildout Expected to Quicken in 2017

Written by John Egan for Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Developing oil & gas terminals does not require large financial investments the same way oil & gas production does. And terminals may not grab news headlines the way some oil & gas pipelines do. Nonetheless, terminals remain an important element of the hydrocarbon value chain. And Industrial Info is tracking a surge in planned spending for terminals in the U.S. and Mexico through the end of 2018.

In the U.S., Industrial Info is tracking about $10 billion of terminals projects scheduled to kick off in 2017 and 2018. The bulk of that scheduled spending--about $6.4 billion--is scheduled to be spent this year, according to Industrial Info's February 13 webcast, Americas Oil & Gas Spending Outlook. Industrial Info also is tracking about $1.1 billion of terminals projects scheduled to be built in Mexico in 2017 and 2018. The vast majority of that spending--about $1 billion--is scheduled to be spent this year.

Industrial Info does not expect all of these projects to begin construction according to schedule. It is possible that some active projects will be delayed or cancelled.

In the U.S., the terminals buildout is concentrated in Texas, Louisiana and Ohio. Hundreds of millions of dollars in project spending also is scheduled to take place in the Canadian provinces of British Columbia, Alberta and New Brunswick.

Click on the image at right to see the 10 North American states and provinces with the greatest scheduled level of project spending on terminals between now and the end of 2018.

One big-ticket terminals projects in Texas is the Orla Grassroot Crude & Condensate Terminal, a $500 million project scheduled to begin construction this June. Developed by Crestwood Equity Partners LP (NYSE:CEQP) (Houston, Texas), this project, part of the Delta Access Pipeline Project, will be able to store up to 80,000 barrels of crude oil and 75,000 barrels of condensate. The crude and condensate are expected to come from the Permian Basin. Construction is scheduled to be completed in September 2018. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.

In Louisiana, one of the largest projects under development is the Port Sulphur Refined Products & Crude Oil Terminal, a $350 million grassroot project being developed by NOLA Oil Terminal LLC (Metairie, Louisiana). That project, scheduled to kick off earlier this year, should be operating by this June. River Construction Incorporated (Belle Chasse, Louisiana) is the general contractor for this project. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.

Almost all of Ohio's terminals-related spending is concentrated in the multi-phase, $1.8 billion NGL storage cavern project being developed by Mountaineer NGL Storage LLC (Littleton, Colorado). These caverns, located more than 6,000 feet underground, would be able to store up to 2 million barrels of natural gas liquids (NGL), presumably extracted from the "wet" portions of Ohio's Utica Shale formation. The first cavern project is expected to begin construction this July, and to be operating by March 2018. Mountaineer NGL Storage is expected to award an engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract next quarter. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.

Despite relatively low natural gas prices, natural gas production continues to grow from Ohio's Utica Shale formation. Production there is expected to average about 4.2 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) this month, up six-fold from that area's 2014 production levels, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) (Washington, D.C.).

Click on the image at right to see a graphic of natural gas production from the Utica Shale in Ohio.

"The economics of terminals projects depend, in part, on supply and demand fundamentals, and prices, for crude oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids," commented Jesus Davis, Industrial Info's vice president of research for the Oil & Gas Production, Pipelines and Terminals industries. "Prices are gradually rising and firming, driven by increased demand. Crude oil prices aren't what they were in 2013, but developers look forward, not backward."

Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, five offices in North America and 10 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.