RICHMOND, Va. - Dominion (NYSE: D) today announced that its Dominion Cove Point Expansion project went into full commercial service yesterday. Output capacity for the liquefied natural gas plant on the Chesapeake Bay in Maryland has increased by 80 percent to 1.8 million dekatherms (Dth) of natural gas per day. LNG storage capacity has nearly doubled to 14.6 billion cubic feet equivalent (Bcfe). 

“Dominion Cove Point is a world-class natural gas import facility with ready access to both the customers and storage areas that make up the world’s largest natural gas market,” said Thomas F. Farrell II, Dominion’s chairman, CEO and president. “We are proud to complete this expansion and provide the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic market access to new natural gas supplies from around the world.”

New facilities include:

• Two LNG storage tanks, each capable of holding 160,000 cubic meters of LNG, or approximately 3.4 Bcfe of natural gas each;
• Increased vaporization and associated station facilities adding 800,000 Dth per day to output capacity;
• An 81-mile, 24-inch pipeline in central Pennsylvania and associated facilities that allow imported natural gas to be transported to key Northeast natural gas markets;
• A 48-mile, 36-inch diameter natural gas pipeline loop in Maryland that increases pipeline capacity from the plant;
• Two new compressor stations in Pennsylvania near Perulack and State College;
• Various natural gas storage facilities and pipelines that move natural gas to the Dominion South Point market hub, other interstate pipelines and the interconnection with Transcontinental Gas Pipeline known as Leidy in Clinton County, Pennsylvania.

A subsidiary of StatoilHydro ASA (NYSE: STO) has contracted for all the new capacity, including firm transportation and storage services in Pennsylvania. The previously existing capacity was already under contract.

Although pipeline construction is now complete, property restoration will continue. Dominion also will continue to monitor restored land along the pipeline route until it has been returned to its original condition or better.

Dominion is one of the nation's largest producers and transporters of energy, with a portfolio of more than 27,000 megawatts of generation, 1.2 trillion cubic feet equivalent of proved natural gas reserves, 14,000 miles of natural gas transmission, gathering and storage pipeline and 6,000 miles of electric transmission lines. Dominion operates the nation’s largest natural gas storage facility with 975 billion cubic feet of storage capacity and serves retail energy customers in 12 states. For more information about Dominion, visit the company's Web site at http://www.dom.com.

CONTACTS:

Media: Dan Donovan (412) 237-2900, Daniel.E.Donovan@dom.com
Karl Neddenien, 804-771-6115, Karl.R.Neddenien@dom.com

Analysts: Laura Kottkamp (804) 819-2254,Laura.E.Kottkamp@dom.com