The expansion will increase the pipeline’s capacity to 470,000 b/d of light and medium crude oil grades to accommodate additional volumes expected from PAA’s Cactus pipeline that is currently under construction. The original plan was for 350,000 b/d of pipeline capacity.

The pipeline will have an initial capacity of 200,000 b/d and is expected to be in service in the second quarter of 2015. The Eagle Ford JV pipeline expansion is expected to cost approximately $120 million.

The Eagle Ford JV pipeline system, most of which is currently in service and expected to be completed by Sept. 30, 2013, is a 50/50 joint venture between Plains and Enterprise that serves the Three Rivers and Corpus Christi refineries and other markets via marine transport facilities at Corpus Christi.

The pipeline supplies the Houston-area market through a connection to the Enterprise Crude Pipeline terminal at Lyssy in Wilson County, Texas. The pipeline expansion will be completed in stages that include adding pumping capacity and looping certain segments of the existing system.

The expansion also includes constructing an additional 2.3 million barrels of operational storage capacity in Gardendale, Tilden and Corpus Christi. The Cactus Pipeline is being constructed by PAA from McCamey, Texas, in the Permian Basin area to Gardendale in La Salle County, Texas.