TC PipeLines, LP acquires, owns, and participates in the management of energy infrastructure businesses in North America. The company’s pipeline systems transport natural gas in the United States of America (U.S.). TC PipeLines GP, Inc. serves as the general partner of the company.
Natural Gas Infrastructure
The company has ownership interests in eight natural gas interstate pipeline systems that are collectively designed to transport approximately 11.3 billion cubic feet per day of natural ga...
TC PipeLines, LP acquires, owns, and participates in the management of energy infrastructure businesses in North America. The company’s pipeline systems transport natural gas in the United States of America (U.S.). TC PipeLines GP, Inc. serves as the general partner of the company.
Natural Gas Infrastructure
The company has ownership interests in eight natural gas interstate pipeline systems that are collectively designed to transport approximately 11.3 billion cubic feet per day of natural gas from producing regions and import facilities to market hubs and consuming markets primarily in the Western, the Midwestern, and Eastern U.S.
All the company’s pipeline systems, except Iroquois Gas Transmission System, LP (Iroquois) and the pipeline facilities jointly owned with Maritimes and Northeast Pipeline LLC (MNE), a subsidiary of Enbridge Inc. on Portland Natural Gas Transmission System (PNGTS) (Joint Facilities), are operated by subsidiaries of TC Energy Corporation (TC Energy). The Iroquois pipeline system is operated by Iroquois Pipeline Operating Company, a wholly owned subsidiary of Iroquois. The PNGTS Joint Facilities are operated by M&N Operating Company, LLC (MNOC), a subsidiary of MNE. MNE is a subsidiary of Enbridge Inc.
The company’s pipeline systems include 100% interest in Gas Transmission Northwest LLC (GTN) with 1,377 miles that extends from an interconnection near Kingsgate, British Columbia, Canada at the Canadian border to a point near Malin, Oregon at the California border and delivers natural gas to the Pacific Northwest and to California; 100% interest in Bison Pipeline LLC (Bison) with 303 miles that extends from a location near Gillette, Wyoming to Northern Border's pipeline system in North Dakota; 100% interest in North Baja Pipeline, LLC (North Baja), a bi-directional pipeline with 86 miles that extends from an interconnection with the El Paso Natural Gas Company pipeline near Ehrenberg, Arizona to an interconnection with a natural gas pipeline near Ogilby, California on the Mexican border transporting natural gas in the southwest; 100% interest in Tuscarora Gas Transmission Company (Tuscarora) with 305 miles that extends from the terminus of the GTN pipeline near Malin, Oregon to its terminus near Reno, Nevada and delivers natural gas in northeastern California and northwestern Nevada; 50 percent interest in Northern Border Pipeline Company (Northern Border) with 1,412 miles that extends from the Canadian border near Port of Morgan, Montana to a terminus near North Hayden, Indiana, south of Chicago; 61.71 percent interest in PNGTS with 295 miles that connects with the TransQuebec and Maritimes Pipeline at the Canadian border to deliver natural gas to customers in the U.S. northeast; 46.45 percent interest in Great Lakes Gas Transmission Limited Partnership (Great Lakes) with 2,115 miles that connects with the TC Energy Mainline at the Canadian border points near Emerson, Manitoba, Canada and St. Clair, Michigan, near Detroit; and 49.34 percent in Iroquois with 416 miles that extends from the TC Energy Mainline system near Waddington, New York to deliver natural gas to customers in the U.S. northeast.
Customers, Contracting and Demand
The company’s customers are primary utilities, local distribution companies, major natural gas marketers, producing companies and other interstate pipelines, including affiliates. Natural gas transportation service is provided pursuant to long-term and short-term contracts on a firm or interruptible basis. The majority of the company’s pipeline systems' natural gas transportation services are provided through firm service transportation contracts with a reservation or demand charge that reserves pipeline capacity.
The company’s pipeline systems market their available capacity and work with customers, including natural gas producers, local distribution companies (LDCs), marketers and end users.
In 2019, GTN’s largest customer, Pacific Gas and Electric Company (Pacific Gas), filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. In July 2020, Pacific Gas emerged from its bankruptcy proceedings. Pacific Gas accounted for approximately seven percent of the company’s consolidated revenues in 2020. As a utility company, Pacific Gas serves residential and industrial customers in the state of California and has an ongoing obligation to serve its customers.
Strategy
The company’s strategy focuses on generating long-term, steady and predictable distributions to its unitholders by investing in long-life critical energy infrastructure that provides delivery of energy to customers.
Government Regulation
All of the company’s pipeline systems are regulated by Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) under the Natural Gas Act of 1938 (NGA) and Energy Policy Act of 2005, which gives FERC jurisdiction to regulate all aspects of the company’s business.
The company’s gas pipeline systems are subject to federal pipeline safety statutes, such as the Natural Gas Pipeline Safety Act of 1968 (NGPSA); the Pipeline Safety Improvement Act of 2002 (PSI Act); the Pipeline Inspection, Protection, and Enforcement Act of 2006 (PIPES Act); the Pipeline Safety, Regulatory Certainty, and Job Creation Act of 2011 (2011 Pipeline Safety Act); and the Protecting Our Infrastructure of Pipelines and Enhancing Safety Act of 2016 (2016 Pipeline Safety Act), as well as regulations promulgated and administered by the U.S. Department of Transportation Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA).
The company’s pipelines are subject to various federal and state laws and regulations, including the federal Occupational Safety and Health Act and comparable state statutes, whose purpose is to protect the health and safety of workers. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and analogous state agencies oversee the implementation of these laws and regulations. Additionally, the OSHA hazard communication standard, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) community right-to-know regulations under Title III of the federal Superfund Amendment and Reauthorization Act and comparable state statutes require that information be maintained concerning hazardous materials used or produced in the company’s operations and that this information be provided to employees, state and local government authorities and citizens.
Federal environmental laws, and their related regulations, which primarily impact the company’s pipeline operations include the Clean Air Act (CAA); the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, also known as the Clean Water Act (CWA); the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (OPA); the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA); the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA); the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA); the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA); the Endangered Species Act (ESA); and the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).
History
TC PipeLines, LP, a Delaware master limited partnership, was founded in 1998. The company was incorporated in 1998.
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