WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Kinder Morgan Energy Partners L.P. (KMP) announced that it plans to invest approximately $140 million to further expand its coal handling facilities along the Gulf Coast. Concurrently, Arch Coal Inc. (ACI) has signed a long-term throughput agreement with KMP that will help support the expansion of these export facilities. In addition, Kinder Morgan Energy said that the company and Arch are in final discussions to include, in the throughput agreement, port space for coal shipments at KMP-owned facilities on the East Coast. Upon completion of the proposed terminal upgrades and subject to certain rail service agreements, Arch will ship coal at guaranteed minimum volume levels through KMP-owned terminals. Specific to the expansions on the Gulf Coast, KMP noted that it will install a new shiploader and a railcar loop track to handle three 135-car unit trains at its Deepwater terminal in Houston. Following completion of the project, the Deepwater terminal will have throughput capacity of 10 million tons of coal per year. The projects are expected to be immediately accretive to cash available to KMP unitholders upon completion, which is anticipated in the second quarter of 2014.
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX
© 2012 AFX News
