PIPELINES / Westcoast Files TriState Pipeline Application to Move
Natural Gas From Chicago to Dawn Hub
WESTCOAST ENERGY INC.
TSE, ME, VSE SYMBOL: WNYSE
SYMBOL: WE
JANUARY 21, 1999
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--Westcoast Energy Inc. (Westcoast)
today announced that its wholly owned subsidiary St. Clair
Pipelines (1996) Ltd. has recently filed an application with the
National Energy Board for construction of the Canadian portion of
the TriState Pipeline Project (TriState).
Westcoast has a 33.3 percent interest in the TriState project,
which will provide new natural gas transportation service from the
Chicago area to Michigan and Ontario, and through connecting
pipelines to eastern U.S. markets. Westcoast's partner in
TriState, CMS Energy Corporation, holds the remaining 66.6 percent
interest and has also filed an application for the U.S. portion of
the project with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
TriState will originate at Joliet, Illinois, and extend
northeasterly through northern Indiana to the Consumers Energy
Company system near White Pigeon, Michigan. From that point,
TriState will add pipeline loops and compression on the Consumers
Energy system and lease the expanded capacity to deliver Canadian
and U.S. natural gas to multiple Michigan markets and to the Dawn
Hub in Ontario. The Dawn facilities are owned by Westcoast's
wholly owned subsidiary Union Gas Limited. From the Dawn Hub,
natural gas may also be delivered to markets in Canada and the
northeast U.S. through connecting pipelines.
"TriState will provide expandable service, based on demand,
between the growing Chicago Hub near Joliet, Illinois, and the
Union Gas storage and transportation facilities at Dawn," said
Michael Stewart, Executive Vice President, Business Development
for Westcoast. "From the Dawn Hub, shippers will have access to
multiple downstream delivery opportunities, including the proposed
Millennium West and Millennium Pipeline projects."
TriState will have an initial capacity of 450 million cubic feet
of natural gas per day, and may be economically expanded to a
capacity of up to one billion cubic feet per day. The estimated
cost of the project, based on an initial capacity of 450 million
cubic feet per day, is expected to be approximately US $400
million. The proposed pipeline is expected to begin service in
late 2000.
CMS Energy Corporation is a $5 billion (sales), $10 billion
(assets) international energy company operating throughout the
U.S. and in 21 countries around the world with businesses in
electric and natural gas utility operations; independent power
production; natural gas pipelines and storage; oil and gas
exploration and production; and energy marketing, services and
trading. CMS Energy Corporation's principal subsidiary is
Consumers Energy, Michigan's largest utility and America's fourth
largest combination gas and electric utility. Information on CMS
Energy is accessible on the Internet through the World Wide Web at
www.cmsenergy.com.
St. Clair Pipelines (1996) Ltd. and Union Gas Limited are wholly
owned subsidiaries of Westcoast Energy Inc. Westcoast Energy Inc.
(TSE: W; NYSE: WE) headquartered in Vancouver, British Columbia,
is a leading North American energy company with assets of more
than $10 billion. The Company's interests include natural gas
gathering, processing and transmission, natural gas storage
facilities and gas distribution, power generation, and
international energy businesses as well as financial, information
and energy services businesses. More information is available on
the Company's Web site at www.westcoastenergy.com. |
