Shell stalls Westward Ho pipeline project

Royal Dutch Shell Plc has decided to delay construction on its 300 000 bpd Westward Ho oil pipeline project. The Westward Ho pipeline is set to transport light sweet crude oil from the St. James crude terminal in Louisiana to markets and pipeline connections across the Texas state line in Port Arthur and Nederland.

According to reports, newer pipelines have already swamped the area with hundreds of thousands of barrels of crude per day, prompting Shell’s decision to put the project on hold and focus on securing more commitments from shippers. Due to a lack of shipper commitments, the company was forced to cut the proposed capacity from an initial 900 000 bpd to 600 000 bpd in 2011, and again to 300 000 bpd in 2012.

A Kinder Morgan spokeswoman, Kimberly Windon, noted that the pipeline had been due to start up in Q3 2014, however, in light of the delay, the company expects construction work to be complete in 2017.

Edited from various sources by Rosalie Starling

Sources: Yahoo, London South East

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