Dominion Conducts Open Season For Salt Storage Service In Southwest Louisiana

February 12, 2002

RICHMOND, Va. – Dominion announced Tuesday it is conducting an open season to seek customers for up to 12 billon cubic feet (Bcf) of high deliverability firm storage service from its Hackberry storage facility located in southwest Louisiana.

Dominion will construct compressor facilities in Cameron Parish, Louisiana, and natural gas pipelines to connect Hackberry’s existing salt caverns to interstate pipelines in the area that carry supplies to the major U.S. markets. Interested shippers have the option of contracting for services typical for high deliverability storage facilities.

The existing caverns have a working capacity of up to 12 (Bcf) of natural gas and will deliver up to 800 million cubic feet of natural gas per day. Additional caverns on the site could be developed in the future. Dominion expects to file an application with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission by mid-2002 to ensure in-service in 2004.

“Hackberry’s high deliverability storage service will meet the needs of marketers and power generators by providing daily, even hourly, injection and withdrawal capability,” said Paul Koonce, Dominion’s senior vice president, portfolio management. “For Dominion, already the largest storage operator in North America with almost one trillion cubic feet of capacity, this is another way to enhance our asset base.”

The Hackberry Storage Project will have direct connections to Natural Gas Pipeline Company’s Louisana Pipeline and access to its LA Pool as well as its numerous receipt and delivery points including Henry Hub. A direct connection is also planned to Transcontinental Pipeline with access to Transco’s Station 65, Tennessee Gas Pipeline, and Florida Gas Transmission through their capacity on the Southwest Louisiana Lateral Pipeline.

The open season will begin Friday, Feb. 15, and end 5 p.m. EST Friday, March 15. The final facilities, rates and capacity for the project will be determined by the results of the open season.

For information regarding this project and open season, contact Joe Kienle at (804) 819-2114 or Ron Ridgway at (304) 627-3207. Dominion Transmission’s electronic bulletin board and its website also will contain general information about this open season as it becomes available.

Dominion, headquartered in Richmond, Va., is one of the nation’s largest producers of energy, with a production capability of more than 3 trillion British thermal units of energy per day. Dominion owns and operates 7,600 miles of natural gas transmission pipeline with a delivery capacity of 6.3 billion cubic feet per day. Dominion serves nearly 4 million retail natural gas and electric customers in five states. For more information about Dominion, visit the company’s web site at www.dom.com.

 

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CONTACTS:    
Dominion Media: Bob Fulton, (304) 627-3200