Enterprise Products Partners L.P. has completed construction, commissioned, and initiated operation of the remaining 162-mile portion of the Aegis ethane pipeline from Lake Charles, Louisiana, to the Napoleonville, Louisiana area.

The 270-mile, 20-inch diameter Aegis system originates at Mont Belvieu, Texas, which is the terminus for more than three-million barrels per day of natural gas liquids (NGL) supply pipeline capacity, is connected to more than two-million barrels per day (BPD) of industry fractionation capacity and is home to more than 110 million barrels of Enterprise-owned storage capacity. Combined with the partnership’s existing South Texas pipeline network, Aegis is an integral part of an ethane header system capable of serving more than 20 petrochemical facilities along the Louisiana and Texas Gulf Coast.

“We are pleased to complete this final phase of the Aegis ethane pipeline,” said A.J. Teague, chief operating officer of Enterprise’s general partner. “The Aegis system provides price-advantaged ethane feedstock and supply flexibility for the expanding network of petrochemical facilities along a 500-mile corridor between Corpus Christi, Texas, and the Mississippi River. These facilities are expected to represent more than 90 percent of domestic ethylene capacity within the next five years.”

The Aegis pipeline project has received strong interest, as indicated by the success of four open seasons, including the most recent one held from November 1 to November 30, 2015. Customers have executed contracts totaling 360,000 BPD that will ramp up over the next four years. With additional pumps, the pipeline will have the capacity to transport approximately 400,000 BPD of ethane.

Enterprise Products Partners L.P. is one of the largest publicly traded partnerships and a leading North American provider of midstream energy services to producers and consumers of natural gas, natural gas liquids, crude oil, refined products and petrochemicals. The partnership’s assets include approximately 49,000 miles of pipelines; 225 million barrels of storage capacity for NGLs, crude oil, refined products and petrochemicals; and 14 billion cubic feet of natural gas storage capacity.