Columbia Pipeline Group Inc. said Sept. 23 it has received notification that its Mountaineer XPress Project (MXP) in West Virginia was recently accepted into pre-filing by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC).
The $2 billion project is expected to provide producers in the Marcellus and Utica shale areas new transportation options to move gas out of the capacity-constrained supply basin and into the interstate market.
The project includes the construction of roughly 165 miles of natural gas pipeline in West Virginia from Marshall County to Wayne County. It will create about 2.7 billion cubic feet per day of firm transportation capacity from existing and new points of receipt along or near its subsidiary's system.
Columbia said it has already begun outreach to landowners and communities in areas where MXP will be constructed.
The project includes upgrades to three existing Columbia compressor stations in Kanawha, Wayne and Marshall counties, W.Va., as well as the construction of three new stations in Doddridge, Jackson and Calhoun (or Ritchie) counties, W.Va. Pipeline construction is expected in the following West Virginia counties: Cabell, Calhoun, Doddridge, Jackson, Marshall, Mason, Putnam, Ritchie, Roane, Tyler, Wetzel and Wirt.
Prior to construction, the project will undergo a comprehensive and transparent environmental review overseen by the FERC. Throughout the review period, the MXP team will continue to work closely with landowners, local officials and communities to provide up-to-date information and ensure community involvement in the process.
Columbia plans to formally file its application with the FERC for MXP and Gulf XPress (GXP) in April 2016.
Pending FERC authorization, Columbia expects to commence MXP construction in the fall of 2017 and place the project in service in the fourth quarter of 2018.