Enterprise Products Partners announced a significant transaction with ExxonMobil, which has agreed to acquire a 40 percent undivided joint interest in the midstream operator’s Bahia natural gas liquids pipeline. The deal, expected to close by early 2026 pending regulatory approvals, positions the companies to jointly expand one of the Permian Basin’s newest large-scale NGL transport systems.
The 550-mile Bahia pipeline has begun commissioning and will enter commercial service immediately afterward. At launch, the system will be capable of transporting 600,000 barrels per day of natural gas liquids from the Midland and Delaware basins in West Texas to Enterprise’s Mont Belvieu fractionation complex.
Following the acquisition’s completion, Enterprise and ExxonMobil plan to expand capacity to 1 million barrels per day. The expansion will include increased pumping capacity and the construction of a 92-mile extension linking the pipeline to ExxonMobil’s Cowboy natural gas processing plant in Eddy County, New Mexico.
The extension, which will also connect to multiple Enterprise-owned processing facilities in the Delaware Basin, is scheduled for completion in the fourth quarter of 2027. ExxonMobil’s interest in the extended system will be known as the Cowboy Connector, while Enterprise will continue to serve as operator.
Enterprise said the Bahia system is designed to support rising natural gas and NGL output across the Permian Basin, where liquids production is forecast to grow by more than 30 percent from 2024 to 2030. The company emphasized that the project enhances critical takeaway capacity needed to move mixed NGLs to Mont Belvieu, one of the largest fractionation complexes in North America.
Enterprise Products Partners continues to rank among the largest publicly traded midstream companies in North America, with more than 50,000 miles of pipelines, 300 million barrels of liquids storage capacity, and extensive natural gas storage and processing operations. The partnership’s assets span crude oil, natural gas, natural gas liquids, refined products, and petrochemicals.
KEY QUOTES:
“We are pleased to partner with ExxonMobil on the Bahia NGL pipeline. As the ratio of natural gas and NGL production to crude oil production continues to increase in the Permian, the Bahia pipeline will be an essential artery to deliver mixed NGLs to the fractionation complex in Mont Belvieu. From 2024 to 2030, NGL production in the Permian Basin is expected to increase by over 30 percent. This expansion supports this growth by providing critical takeaway capacity for the basin.”
A.J. “Jim” Teague, Co-Chief Executive Officer of Enterprise’s General Partner
