Plains All American Pipeline acquires Canadian natural gas liquids business for $204m

Plains All American Pipeline’s (PAA) wholly-owned subsidiary Plains Midstream Canada (PMC) has completed its previously announced acquisition of the Canadian natural gas liquids (NGL) business from Spectra Energy’s wholly-owned subsidiary Westcoast Energy for approximately C$267m ($204m).

As part of the deal, PAA acquired assets comprising the Empress NGL extraction and fractionation facility, the Petroleum Transmission Company (PTC) pipeline.

The acquisition will also include seven NGL terminals and two NGL storage facilities in Western Canada.

PMC CEO Dave Duckett said: "PMC has been looking for the right opportunity to strengthen our strategic position and further optimise one of our core business areas.

"Integrated with our current infrastructure, these assets create flexibility and optionality in our NGL business platform, supporting continued long-term profitability and growth for PMC."

Furthermore, it improves strategic NGL asset bases and allows PMC to use excess fractionation capacity, as well as optimises NGL storage facilities that connect PMC's existing systems.

The acquired assets complement PMC's existing core Canadian NGL midstream operations while adding 580 miles of pipeline from Empress, Alberta, to the Fort Whyte Terminal in Winnipeg, Manitoba, to the existing 1,600 miles of NGL pipeline of PAA.

The Empress NGL facility and PTC will give PMC access to seven truck terminals and three rail loading facilities across the system.

Duckett added: "This transaction also builds on a long-term track record of driving significant value through acquisitions, and we look forward to working with our stakeholders to continue to operate safely and in an environmentally and socially responsible manner."