14-06-01 The pipeline consortium shipping gas from Nova Scotia's Sable field will spend C$ 1 bn over the next five years to double capacity in a bid to head off looming competition, according to Westcoast Energy chairman Michael Phelps. He said expansion of the Maritimes & Northeast Pipeline to New England and Atlantic Canada is "one of our highest capital investment priorities. The real frontier play, the hottest frontier play, is the Scotian Shelf; it's here and now." The expansion will boost volumes to 1.2 bn cfpd, with the prospects of spending another C$ 1 bn to reach 2 bn cfpd.
Phelps said the M&NP consortium is in talks with ExxonMobil-led Sable Offshore Energy, the producer consortium, which is gearing up for the second phase of its gas development offshore Nova Scotia. The M&NP partners are Westcoast 37.5 %, Duke Energy 37.5 %, ExxonMobil 12.5 % and Emera 12.5 %.

US energy giants El Paso and Marathon announced they have started a feasibility study for a new pipeline, costing C$ 2 bn with a minimum capacity of 500 mm cfpd. Phelps said a new project will get "weighed down by the time required to get approvals and permits. Those are burdens we don't face. So I don't lose a lot of sleep over it."
He said M&NP wants to get in ahead of a wave of new development on the Scotian Shelf, including a C$ 1 bn project by PanCanadian Petroleum to develop its Deep Panuke discovery and exploration commitments of another C$ 1 bn by Kerr McGee, Anadarko, BP, Shell and several smaller companies.