Major U.S. energy companies Dominion, Duke Energy, Piedmont Natural Gas and AGL Resources formed a joint venture (JV) to build and own the proposed Atlantic Coast Pipeline, the companies announced on Sept. 2. The planned $4.5 billion to $5 billion, 550-mile natural gas pipeline would run from Harrison County, W.Va., through Virginia, with an extension to Chesapeake, Va., and south through North Carolina to Robeson County. The main pipeline would have a 42-inch diameter in West Virginia and Virginia, and a 36-inch diameter in North Carolina.

The JV, called Atlantic Coast Pipeline LLC, will own the pipeline initially proposed by Dominion as the Southeast Reliability project. Ownership stakes in the JV are: Dominion, 45%; Duke Energy, 40%; Piedmont, 10%; and AGL Resources, 5%. Subsidiaries and affiliates of all JV partners plan to be customers of the pipeline under 20-year contracts, pending regulatory approvals.