MarkWest Energy Partners LP and The Energy & Minerals Group (EMG) will develop a dry gas gathering system in the Utica Shale, the companies said Aug. 12. The system will be developed under a joint venture (JV) between MarkWest and EMG, which will own two-thirds and one-third, respectively.

The system will be underpinned by a long-term fee-based contract with Ascent Resources-Utica LLC, a subsidiary of Ascent Resources LLC, which has about 280,000 net acres in the Utica and Marcellus.

Frank Semple, chairman, president, and CEO of MarkWest, said investments in the system could surpass $1 billion in the next three years.

Ascent gave the parties about 100,000 gross acres in northern Belmont and Jefferson counties, Ohio. The system will gather more than 2 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) of gas from other producers as well as from Ascent’s acreage, the companies added. The system will have more than 200,000 horsepower of compression. Initial operations are scheduled to begin by year-end 2015.

Takeaway options will include connections to the Ohio River System, a gathering trunk line project delivering gas to Rockies Express Pipeline, the Texas Eastern Transmission through the new OPEN project, the ET Rover Pipeline and other interstate pipelines.

Currently, MarkWest and EMG, together with Summit Midstream Partners, LLC, already operate one of the largest gathering systems in the Utica through the Ohio Gathering Co. LLC JV.

Domestic midstream-focused MarkWest Energy Partners LP is based in Denver.