The natural gas production boom has restructured the North American pipeline network, spurring billions in infrastructure investments–gathering, processing, and transmission facilities–needed to bring surging supplies from shale formations to the pipeline grid. With persistent low natural gas prices, demand for natural gas abroad and locally by domestic and industrial consumers has been rising at a steady pace, requiring expansion of the gas transportation network.

Booming Marcellus production has led to pipeline developments in the Northeast; while, simultaneously, growing prominence of gas-fired generation is encouraging expansion across other regions. For example, Spectra’s Ohio Pipeline Energy Network is designed to deliver new incremental production from the Marcellus and Utica Shale plays to growing and diverse markets in the Midwest, Southeast and Gulf Coast. Pipeline expansions by Williams Cos., Kinder Morgan Inc. and Spectra Energy Corp. are designed to transport shale gas from the Marcellus basin to southern states.

The flow change is reshaping long-haul pipeline capacity on systems connecting the Gulf Coast and Northeast. Emerging demand in the south provides significant opportunities for Gulf Coast-to-Northeast pipeline segments, much of which has been underutilized over the last several years due to low-cost Marcellus supplies for Northeastern markets. This has positioned export terminals to become important demand centers, with exporters willing to enter long-term transportation agreements required to support major pipeline expansions.

Originally published by EnerKnol.

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