TransCanada offers Alberta gas shippers lower price along Canadian Mainline

CALGARY – TransCanada Corp. (TSX:TRP) is offering lower-priced long-term contracts for Alberta natural gas shippers that want to use the Canadian Mainline system that stretches across the Prairies and winds through Ontario to a hub near Sarnia, Ont.

The Calgary-based company says its proposal for a new round of binding commitments doesn’t affect current contracts that are already in place for the system.

Instead, TransCanada says the new tolling arrangement offers additional access to markets in Eastern Canada and the northeastern United States, from the Empress hub in eastern Alberta to the Dawn hub in southern Ontario.

TransCanada says the proposed price of service for new 10-year contracts is between 75 cents and 82 cents per gigajoule, subject to the contract volume.

The new price doesn’t include provisions to divert the flow to alternate points, although TransCanada says it may be possible to deliver along the Great Lakes pipeline in some circumstances.

The new capacity will be open for bidding until Nov. 10, subject to approval from the National Energy Board. The capacity will be in-service on Nov. 1, 2017.