NJR Midstream, a business of New Jersey Resources, has agreed to buy a natural gas storage facility in southeastern Mississippi from Macquarie’s infrastructure arm for $367.5 million.
The transaction is expected to close sometime this year, and is subject to certain contractual conditions. The facility, called Leaf River, is one of the newest high-capacity storage facilities in North America.
“By leveraging our market expertise, NJR Midstream is well positioned with Leaf River to be a leading Gulf Coast service provider in one of the most significant and growing energy demand centers in the United States,” said Steve Westhoven, president and COO of New Jersey Resources. “This transaction is another example of our commitment to pursuing and delivering long-term shareowner value by acquiring high-quality assets with organic growth potential.”
Leaf River is connected to six interstate pipelines and consists of three salt dome caverns with a combined working natural gas storage capacity of 32.2 million dekatherms. The facility has the capability to expand with the installation of an additional storage cavern that would add approximately 13.1 million dekatherms of capacity.
NJR Midstream will now have ownership interests in natural gas storage facilities in the Gulf Coast and Marcellus Shale regions, with working gas capacity of more than 44 million dekatherms.
