The new line will become part of the Lakehead pipeline system of Enbridge Energy Partners, which is partially owned and is managed by Enbridge subsidiaries. Development of the line will be subject to support by crude oil shippers, and regulatory approvals.
The proposed 1000-km long, 24 to 30-in diameter, pipeline will have an initial capacity of 250,000brl/d, and will cost $550-$650 million. It will interconnect with Enbridge’s Spearhead pipeline, and provide flexibility to access tankage on Spearhead and to move to any of the Chicago, Wood River, or Cushing market hubs from the interconnection point in Illinois. The line is expected to be in service in 2007, allowing sufficient time for shipper and public consultation, detailed route determination, environmental reviews, and regulatory approvals.
The new pipeline is intended to provide increased capacity on the Lakehead system to accommodate growing production from the Alberta oil sands, and is part of a broader Enbridge strategy to provide greater access to new US markets for growing Canadian crude oil supplies. Alberta’s oil sands have recently been acknowledged by the US Energy Information Administration as having 180Bbrl of crude oil reserves.