CALGARY, ALBERTA--(Marketwired - June 5, 2013) - Enbridge (TSX:ENB) (NYSE:ENB) today announced a second binding open season ("Open Season") to solicit additional commitments from shippers for capacity on the proposed Southern Access Extension pipeline, to be constructed, owned and operated by U.S. subsidiary Enbridge Pipelines (Illinois) L.L.C. (the "Carrier"). The new pipeline will transport crude oil from Pontiac, Illinois, at Enbridge's Flanagan Terminal, where it will receive crude oil from Enbridge Energy Partners, L.P.'s ("the Partnership") Lakehead System, to Patoka, Illinois.
The 165-mile (265-kilometre), 24-inch diameter pipeline will be constructed as a stand-alone project with an anticipated in-service date in the second quarter of 2015. The diameter of the pipeline could be increased, depending on the results of the Open Season. Committed shippers will be asked to commit to capacity only on the Southern Access Extension proposed pipeline and will not be required to make long-term commitments to ship on the Partnership's Lakehead System.
Enbridge has received sufficient capacity commitments through the first Open Season held December 12, 2012, to January 18, 2013, to support the 24-inch pipeline as proposed. This Open Season provides an opportunity for additional shippers to support the Southern Access Extension by making volume commitments for the required term.
Shippers will have the option of selecting a ten or fifteen-year term for service. Subject to regulatory approval by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), committed volumes will not be subject to pro-rationing to accommodate uncommitted volumes under ordinary operating conditions. The Carrier will share in construction cost overruns with committed shippers, which will provide an incentive to the Carrier to minimize capital costs.
Open Season Process
The binding open commitment period will begin on June 5, 2013 and will end at 4 p.m. MT on July 19, 2013.
Bona fide potential shippers that wish to receive access to the Open Season documents, including the Transportation Services Agreement, are required to execute a Confidentiality Agreement.
More information about the Southern Access Extension project and the binding open season is available at http://southernaccessextension.enbridgeus.com or by contacting:
| Morgan Keith | Robert Dulik |
| Enbridge Inc. | Enbridge Inc. |
| (403) 508-3198 | (403) 231-5713 |
| morgan.keith@enbridge.com | robert.dulik@enbridge.com |
Concurrently with the Southern Access Extension Open Season, a subsidiary of Energy Transfer Equity, L.P. (NYSE:ETE) and Energy Transfer Partners, L.P. (NYSE:ETP) will be holding a binding open season for crude oil transportation service from Patoka to the Eastern Gulf Coast refinery market. The Eastern Gulf Crude Access Project (EGCAP) will be capable of transporting up to 420,000 bpd of crude oil from the Patoka Hub directly to refinery markets along the Mississippi River and the Louisiana Gulf Coast, including to the crude oil terminaling hub in St. James, Louisiana (St. James Hub). Enbridge and Energy Transfer have entered into an agreement on the terms for the joint development of the project.
Conditioned upon authorization by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Energy Transfer also plans to be able to mitigate construction and environmental impacts of EGCAP by redeploying approximately 575 miles of underutilized pipeline that is currently part of the natural gas pipeline system of Trunkline Gas Company, LLC. Additional information about the EGCAP Project and the associated open season can be found at the following link on ETE and ETP's website: www.energytransfer.com/ops_egca.aspx.
About Enbridge Inc.
Enbridge Inc. is a North American leader in delivering energy and has been included on the Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World ranking for the past five years. As a transporter of energy, Enbridge operates, in Canada and the U.S., the world's longest crude oil and liquids transportation system. The Company also has a significant and growing involvement in natural gas gathering, transmission and midstream businesses, and an increasing involvement in power transmission. As a distributor of energy, Enbridge owns and operates Canada's largest natural gas distribution company, and provides distribution services in Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick and New York State. As a generator of energy, Enbridge has interests in close to 1,600 megawatts of renewable and alternative energy generating capacity and is expanding its interests in wind, solar and geothermal energy. Enbridge employs more than 10,000 people, primarily in Canada and the U.S. and is ranked as one of Canada's Greenest Employers and one of Canada's Top 100 Employers for 2013. Enbridge is included on the 2012/2013 Dow Jones Sustainability World Index and the Dow Jones Sustainability North America Index. Enbridge's common shares trade on the Toronto and New York stock exchanges under the symbol ENB. For more information, visit www.enbridge.com.
Certain information provided in this news release constitutes forward-looking statements. The words "anticipate", "expect", "project", "estimate", "forecast" and similar expressions are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. Although Enbridge believes that these statements are based on information and assumptions which are current, reasonable and complete, these statements are necessarily subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties pertaining to operating performance, regulatory parameters, weather, economic conditions and commodity prices. You can find a discussion of those risks and uncertainties in our Canadian securities filings and American SEC filings. While Enbridge makes these forward-looking statements in good faith, should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary significantly from those expected. Except as may be required by applicable securities laws, Enbridge assumes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements made herein or otherwise, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
For more information please contact: