Enterprise Products Partners announced April 3 it has expanded its gas processing capabilities in the Permian Basin and plans to add more capacity over the next two years.
Enterprise has begun service on two plants: the Leonidas in the Midland Basin and the Mentone 3 in the Delaware Basin.
Each plant has a capacity to process 300 MMcf/d of natural gas and 40,000 bbl/d of NGLs. Three more plants are scheduled to come online by the second quarter of 2026.
“The Permian Basin is expected to account for more than 90% of domestic NGL production by the end of the decade as producers and oilfield service companies continue to push the envelope and develop new and more efficient techniques in one of the world’s most prolific energy basins,” A.J. “Jim” Teague, co-CEO of Enterprise’s general partner, said in a press release.
The U.S. NGL market has been driven primarily through growth production in the Permian region, the U.S. Energy Information Administration reported April 3. U.S. ethane production rose 9% from 2022 to new record highs in 2023.
“The Texas Inland and New Mexico refining districts, which span the Permian Basin, accounted for 61% of all U.S. ethane production in 2023,” according to an EIA press release. Since 2014, the U.S. annual daily average of production has grown from about 1.1 MMbbl/d to 2.6 MMbbl/d.
At the company’s investor day on April 3, Teague showed the audience a chart that tracked U.S. ethane production from 2010 to 2023, when production almost doubled to just under 100 billion pounds a year (US$126 billion).
“You can see what’s happened as a result of shale on ethylene production,” Teague said. “It has been like a tsunami.”
Recommended Reading
CEO Darren Woods: What’s Driving Permian M&A for Exxon, Other E&Ps
2024-03-18 - Since acquiring XTO for $36 billion in 2010, Exxon Mobil has gotten better at drilling unconventional shale plays. But it needed Pioneer’s high-quality acreage to keep running in the Permian Basin, CEO Darren Woods said at CERAWeek by S&P Global.
Uinta Basin's XCL Seeks FTC OK to Buy Altamont Energy
2024-03-07 - XCL Resources is seeking approval from the Federal Trade Commission to acquire fellow Utah producer Altamont Energy LLC.
Analysts: Why Are Investors Snapping Up Gulfport Energy Stock?
2024-02-29 - Shares for Oklahoma City-based Gulfport Energy massively outperformed market peers over the past year—and analysts think the natural gas-weighted name has even more upside.
SilverBow Saga: Investor Urges E&P to Take Kimmeridge Deal
2024-03-21 - Kimmeridge’s proposal to combine Eagle Ford players Kimmeridge Texas Gas (KTG) and SilverBow Resources is gaining support from another large investor.
Mesa III Reloads in Haynesville with Mineral, Royalty Acquisition
2024-04-03 - After Mesa II sold its Haynesville Shale portfolio to Franco-Nevada for $125 million late last year, Mesa Royalties III is jumping back into Louisiana and East Texas, as well as the Permian Basin.