Two recently completed expansions of Transco, totalling approximately 315,000 cf/d of natural gas transportation capacity, contributed to the volume record.
Transco delivered a record-breaking 12.6 MMcf on 7 January for its Zones 4-6 market area, stretching from Mississippi to New York City. The new peak-day mark surpasses the previous high of 11.9 MMcf set on 7 January 2014. The 7 January 2015 record volume represents enough gas to heat about 50 million US homes.
Total peak-day deliveries across the entire Transco system stretching from South Texas to New York City totalled 13.4 MMcf/d on 7 January. Williams expects deliveries to increase substantially in the coming years as additional planned Transco projects go into service.
“We fully expected to hit another record this year because natural gas demand for home heating and power generation continues to grow in new markets,” said Transco Pipeline Vice President and General Manager Frank Ferazzi.
“In anticipation of this steady demand growth, we are continually expanding our Transco system to serve the fastest growing markets in the country in the Northeast and along the Eastern Seaboard,” he said.
On 1 December 2014, portions of two Transco expansions were placed into service, contributing to this year’s record. The projects included modifications to Transco’s mainline as part of the Virginia Southside Expansion (250,000 cf/d) and a portion of the Northeast Connector (65,000 cf/d).
To meet future demand for firm natural gas transportation capacity, Williams has previously announced approximately $US4.4 billion of Transco growth projects that are expected to be placed into service between 2015 and 2017. The expansions, which consist of 12 projects in seven eastern states, are designed to serve customers’ demand for power generation, industries and local distribution.
The Transco pipeline is a 16,415 km pipeline system that transports natural gas to markets throughout the northeastern and southeastern USA. Williams Partners received US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approval in late 2013 and received binding commitments from shippers in early 2014.