The Cactus II pipeline will transport crude oil from the Permian basin in West Texas to Corpus Christi and other nearby destination points. It is being developed with an estimated investment of £908m ($1.1bn).
Cactus II Pipeline, a joint venture (JV) company between Plains All American Pipeline (PAA), Western Gas Equity Partners, and third-party companies, owns the project. PAA holds 65% stake in the JV and is also responsible for the pipeline construction and operation. Western Gas Equity Partners holds 15% interest, while the remaining share is held by third-party companies.
The project comprises new and expanded pipeline facilities designed to transport 670,000 barrels of crude oil per day from McCamey to the destination points.
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) approved the Cactus II project development in April 2019. Full operations are anticipated to be commenced in mid-2020.
Project Gallery
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Cactus II pipeline is a 925km (575 miles)-long oil pipeline system passing through the Permian Basin in the US. Image courtesy of blake.thornberry.
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Cactus II shipped first crude oil from the Permian Basin to Corpus Christi in August 2019. Image courtesy of blake.thornberry.
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Corinth Pipeworks supplied steel pipes for the Cactus II pipeline. Image courtesy of Contando Estrelas.
Construction of the project was commenced in January 2018, and first shipment of crude oil was made on 12 August 2019.
Cactus II pipeline route and design details
Cactus II pipeline is a combination of existing pipelines and two new 26-inch diameter pipelines from McCamey. It will originate at Wink in Texas and terminate at destination points at Corpus Christi in the Ingleside area.
The pipeline system collects oil from various points such as Orla, Wink, Midland, Crane, and McCamey in Texas, and is also capable of segregating oil based on quality.
The first new pipeline will extend from Wink to McCamey in Texas, while the second pipeline will transport oil from McCamey to Corpus Christi.
A new terminal with the capacity to store approximately one million barrels will be constructed to the south of Taft, Texas.
Cactus pipeline details
PAA commissioned the 310mi-long Cactus pipeline in 2015, with an investment of $350m. The 20-inch diameter crude oil pipeline originates at McCamey and terminates at Gardeldale in Texas.
The initial capacity of the Cactus pipeline was 200,000bpd, which was expanded to 390,000bpd in 2017.
The pipeline carries both sweet and sour crude oil from Permian Basin to the Eagle Ford JV pipeline system. The Eagle Ford JV pipeline delivers crude oil to Three Rivers and Corpus Christi markets. It is also capable of supplying oil to Houston through a connection to the Enterprise South Texas Crude Oil Pipeline.
Crude oil from the pipeline can be loaded onto trains at either PAA's Gardendale station or to the Eagle Ford JV barge dock facility in Corpus Christi.
Contractors involved
Plains All American Pipeline signed a long-term agreement with Trafigura, in 2018, to transport 300,000bpd of crude oil from the Permian Basin to the Port of Corpus Christi through the Cactus II pipeline.
Corinth Pipeworks Pipe Industry, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Cenergy Holdings, is the supplier of steel pipes for the Cactus II pipeline.