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
Stena Evolution Upgrade Planned for Sparta Ops
2024-03-27 - The seventh-gen drillship will be upgraded with a 20,000-psi equipment package starting in 2026.
Sinopec Brings West Sichuan Gas Field Onstream
2024-03-14 - The 100 Bcm sour gas onshore field, West Sichuan Gas Field, is expected to produce 2 Bcm per year.
Empire Petroleum’s Williston Drilling Program Identifies New Zones
2024-05-16 - Empire Petroleum provided updates on its Williston Basin development drilling program in its first quarter 2024 earnings results.
E&P Highlights: March 11, 2024
2024-03-11 - Here’s a roundup of the latest E&P headlines, including a new bid round offshore Bangladesh and new contract awards.
Well Logging Could Get a Makeover
2024-02-27 - Aramco’s KASHF robot, expected to deploy in 2025, will be able to operate in both vertical and horizontal segments of wellbores.