HOUSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Kinder Morgan, Inc. (NYSE: KMI) today announced its plan to expand the working gas storage capacity at its Markham Storage facility (Markham) in Matagorda County along the Texas Gulf Coast. KMI has reached an agreement with Underground Services Markham, LLC, a subsidiary of Texas Brine Company LLC, to lease an additional cavern at Markham to provide more than 6 billion cubic feet (Bcf) of incremental working gas storage capacity and 650 million cubic feet per day (MMcf/d) of incremental withdrawal capacity on KMI’s extensive Texas intrastate pipeline system. Anchor shippers have subscribed to approximately half of the available capacity under long-term agreements, and commercial in-service for the project is expected in January 2024.
“During Winter Storm Uri, KMI’s storage portfolio was critical to supplying human needs customers in Texas while also providing much needed supply to numerous electric generation facilities during the storm. We are pleased to increase our natural gas storage solutions to further support Texas customers, particularly during severe weather events,” said KMI Natural Gas Midstream President Tom Dender. “Storage capabilities on highly utilized assets are critical to support Texas’ ability to respond to an energy crisis and ensure energy reliability as renewables become a greater portion of the state’s energy mix. This expansion will provide much needed capacity that could supply gas-fired electric generation facilities within ERCOT and provide electric service to well in excess of one million homes in Texas.”
Prior to the expansion, Markham had 21.8 Bcf of working gas storage capacity with peak delivery of 1.1 Bcf/day of natural gas with multiple receipt and delivery points on KMI’s nearly 7,000-mile Texas intrastate system. Interested shippers can obtain more information by contacting Larry Bell, Chief Commercial Officer of Intrastate Pipelines in KMI’s Midstream Group at 713.369.8776 or Larry_Bell@kindermorgan.com.
About Kinder Morgan, Inc.
Kinder Morgan, Inc. (NYSE: KMI) is one of the largest energy infrastructure companies in North America. Access to reliable, affordable energy is a critical component for improving lives around the world. We are committed to providing energy transportation and storage services in a safe, efficient and environmentally responsible manner for the benefit of the people, communities and businesses we serve. We own an interest in or operate approximately 82,000 miles of pipelines, 140 terminals, and 700 billion cubic feet of working natural gas storage capacity and have renewable natural gas generation capacity of approximately 2.2 Bcf per year of gross production with up to an additional 5.2 Bcf in development. Our pipelines transport natural gas, refined petroleum products, crude oil, condensate, CO2 and other products, and our terminals store and handle various commodities including gasoline, diesel fuel, chemicals, ethanol, metals and petroleum coke. Learn more about our work advancing energy solutions on the lower carbon initiatives page at www.kindermorgan.com.
About Texas Brine Company, LLC
Texas Brine is a family-owned business based in Houston, Texas with a proud heritage in salt-related businesses. Founded in 1946, Texas Brine helped pioneer the commercial production of brine through solution mining in Texas salt domes and co-founded the Solution Mining Research Institute to promote understanding and expertise in this evolving field. We currently supply approximately a third of the brine requirements of the chlor-alkali industry - creating millions of barrels of storage capacity per year. Our underground caverns developed through brine production are designed to meet storage needs for a wide variety of gas and liquid products. Our focus is on the needs of our customers, from operating customer-owned assets to developing and owning greenfield sites dedicated to a customer's plant. Due to this commitment to service, it is no surprise that Texas Brine has customer relationships that span half a century. The Markham site, created as a result of brine production by Texas Brine from natural salt deposits, has been in use for more than 30 years for storage of natural gas and has the infrastructure to support this expansion. For more information, visit the Texas Brine website and follow us on LinkedIn.
Important Information Relating to Forward-Looking Statements
This news release includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and Section 21E of the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934. Generally the words “expects,” “believes,” anticipates,” “plans,” “will,” “shall,” “estimates,” and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements, which are not historical in nature. Forward-looking statements in this news release include express or implied statements concerning the anticipated capacity, timing and benefits of the proposed Markham Storage Expansion project. Forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties and are based on the beliefs and assumptions of management, based on information currently available to them. Although KMI believes that these forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, it can give no assurance as to when or if any such forward-looking statements will materialize or their ultimate impact on KMI’s operations or financial condition. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in or implied by these forward-looking statements include the risks and uncertainties described in KMI’s reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year-ended December 31, 2022 (under the headings “Risk Factors” and “Information Regarding Forward-Looking Statements” and elsewhere) and its subsequent reports, which are available through the SEC’s EDGAR system at www.sec.gov and on KMI’s website at ir.kindermorgan.com. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they were made, and except to the extent required by law, KMI undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statement because of new information, future events or other factors. Because of these risks and uncertainties, readers should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements.