HARDISTY, ALBERTA--November 26, 2003 - Enbridge Inc. and CCS Inc.
today announced the official opening of their jointly owned
underground crude oil storage facility at Hardisty, Alberta.
Enbridge and CCS formed an operating partnership in June 2002 to
develop Hardisty Caverns L.P. (HCLP) on property acquired by CCS
in 2001. The $70 million facility has four existing salt caverns,
ranging in size from 600,000 to 900,000 barrels, and plans for
expansion are already underway.
Crude oil from a number of sources in Western Canada will be
stored at the facility for eventual delivery to market through
the Enbridge terminal at Hardisty. In 2002, HCLP signed a
long-term agreement with a major energy producer to provide
exclusive access to the four existing caverns on a
fee-for-service basis.
"We placed this first phase of capacity, which is fully
subscribed, into service on November 1," said J. Richard Bird,
Enbridge's Group Vice President, Transportation North.
"Significant increases in oil sands production, and unprecedented
growth in volumes are expected by the end of the decade. The
potential of underground crude oil storage caverns will provide
customers flexible operating and marketing options for the
long-term development of oil sands production."
Mr. Bird said the caverns' location near Hardisty Terminal places
them strategically in line with feeder pipelines from the
Athabasca region and Enbridge's main line system that connects
Western Canadian crude to markets in Eastern Canada and the U.S.
Midwest.
"We were able to combine Enbridge's crude oil movement expertise
with CCS's cavern expertise in order to design, engineer and
construct the first crude oil cavern storage facility in Canada,"
said Dave Werklund, CCS President and CEO.
During the project's construction phase, HCLP drilled two new 13
5/8-inch well bores into each cavern to increase the daily
injection/withdrawal capacity to over 100,000 barrels per day.
The brine pond was refurbished with two sets of liners and was
expanded to receive over three million barrels of displaced brine
from the caverns. The new buffer tanks, manifolds and high volume
pumps assist in providing total storage flexibility for all types
of crude oil and condensate to meet our customer's needs 365 days
a year.
About Enbridge
Enbridge Inc. is a leader in energy transportation and
distribution in North America and internationally. 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 is involved in international energy projects and
has a growing involvement in the natural gas transmission and
midstream businesses. As a distributor of energy, Enbridge owns
and operates Canada's largest natural gas distribution company,
which provides distribution services in Ontario, Quebec and New
York State; and is developing a gas distribution system for the
province of New Brunswick. Enbridge employs approximately 4,000
people, primarily in Canada, the U.S. and South America. Enbridge
common shares trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange in Canada and
on the New York Stock Exchange in the U.S., under the symbol ENB.
Information about Enbridge is available on the Company's web site
at www.enbridge.com.
About CCS
CCS is a leader in Canadian oil and gas field services based out
of Calgary, operating since 1984. Through its CCS Energy Services
division, the Company offers crude oil treatment, terminal
services and storage in Western Canada. CCS also provides
treatment, recovery and disposal solutions for oilfield
by-products at 27 Canadian facilities. CCS offers drilling fluid
technology and drilling services through its subsidiary ProDrill.
Through its Concord Well Servicing division, which employs 53
service rigs, the Company provides well servicing in Western
Canada. The CCS Income Trust Units are listed on the Toronto
Stock Exchange under the symbol "CCR.UN". Information about CCS
is available on the company's web site at www.ccsincometrust.com.
When used in this news release, the words "anticipate", "expect",
"project", "believe", "estimate", "forecast" and similar
expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements,
which include statements relating to pending and proposed
projects. Such statements are subject to certain risks,
uncertainties and assumptions pertaining to operating
performance, regulatory parameters, weather and economic
conditions and, in the case of pending and proposed projects,
risks relating to design and construction, regulatory processes,
obtaining financing and performance of other parties, including
partners, contractors and suppliers.
-30-