NuStar Logistics LP and TexStar Midstream Services LP have signed a letter of intent to develop a new pipeline system to transport Eagle Ford Shale crude and condensate to Corpus Christi TX.
TexStar will build and operate a new 65-mile, 12-inch pipeline that will have the capacity to move 120,000 barrels per day of crude and condensate from Frio County to Three Rivers. TexStar will build at least two truck unloading facilities which will be located along the pipeline to gather crude oil produced in Atascosa, Frio, LaSalle, McMullen, and Live Oak counties. At Three Rivers, the TexStar pipeline will be interconnected with a new storage facility to be constructed by NuStar. That storage facility will be connected to NuStar's existing 16-inch pipeline that will have the capacity to transport 200,000 barrels per day into NuStar's Corpus Christi North Beach Terminal. That terminal has approximately 2 million barrels of storage capacity, and the Port of Corpus Christi Authority recently approved a land lease option agreement for 15 acres contiguous to the existing property, which will provide terminal expansion capabilities. TexStar and NuStar expect to complete construction and begin service on the projects in the second quarter of 2012.
Curt Anastasio, NuStar president and chief executive officer, noted that this is part of a concentrated effort in which NuStar expects to significantly expand and modify its pipeline and terminal infrastructure to transport and store even greater volumes of Eagle Ford Shale crude and condensate.
“TexStar is an ideal partner for NuStar in this project because they are a very well managed company and they have a proven ability to complete projects like this quickly and efficiently, which is a win for both of our companies and our customers,” said Anastasio. “And this project is part of a larger strategy to give our customers even greater logistical flexibility by moving the crude and condensate from the Eagle Ford region to Corpus Christi, which gives them greater access to major refining and trading hub markets since Corpus Christi has waterborne capabilities for loading vessels.