With MLO1 and MLO2 in the batting order, Enbridge has close to 500,000 bpd of new capacity planned by decade’s end to support Western Canadian production growth
Enbridge’s 430,000-barrel-a-day expansion of our liquids pipeline system for Canadian producers?
Think of it as the heavy-hitting batting order of a pennant contender, suggests Colin Gruending.
“We’re proud to sanction Southern Illinois Connector. Maybe in baseball terms, that’s our leadoff hitter and we’re now on base,” said Mr. Gruending, Enbridge’s Executive Vice President and President of our Liquids Pipelines business, on Nov. 7 during our 2025 third-quarter financial earnings call.
“MLO1 (Enbridge’s Mainline Optimization initiative, Phase 1, announced in a Nov. 14 news release) has just been to the plate. And MLO2 (Phase 2 of the optimization), continuing the analogy here, is in the batter’s box . . . and it’s got a bigger bat than we thought we had before,” said Mr. Gruending.
“So, using joint venture partners, this is all coming together nicely. Hopefully we get the bases loaded.”
"We have consistently talked about our southbound playbook . . . the south is where it’s at. Integrated business models. Lots of big, efficient, long-lived refineries that are very competitive. And of course, less competition now from Venezuela and Mexico inbound heavy."
Colin Gruending
EVP and President,
Liquids Pipelines
On Nov. 7, Enbridge announced that we’ve sanctioned the Southern Illinois Connector, a 56-mile pipeline running from Wood River to Patoka, IL as the lynchpin creating an extra 100,000 bpd of long-haul, contracted service to the Gulf Coast. The US$0.5-billion initiative, expected to enter service in 2028, also involves:
- A 30,000-bpd expansion of our Express-Platte pipeline system to benefit Canadian producers.
- Using 70,000-bpd of existing capacity on our Spearhead Pipeline.
- Moving those 100,000 bpd from Patoka to Nederland, TX on the Energy Transfer Crude Oil Pipeline (ETCOP), in which Enbridge has a 27.6% net interest.
The US$1.4-billion Phase 1 of our Mainline Optimization initiative—announced on Nov. 14—will add 150,000 bpd of system capacity on our Mainline system to benefit Canadian producers, and 100,000 bpd of system capacity on our Flanagan South Pipeline, which runs from Pontiac, IL to Cushing, OK. To achieve these expansions, Enbridge will:
- Create upstream optimizations and terminal enhancements on the Mainline.
- Add pump stations and terminal enhancements along Flanagan South.
- Use existing capacity on the existing Seaway system, a 50-50 joint venture between Enbridge and Enterprise Products, from Cushing to Houston.
“This project demonstrates the competitive advantage of leveraging existing networks to meet growing customer demand, supporting long-term energy security and affordability across North America,” noted Mr. Gruending in the Nov. 14 news release.
Additionally, our Mainline Optimization Phase 2 will provide another 250,000 bpd of incremental, full-path capacity by the end of the decade to benefit Canadian producers. MLO2 will use existing capacity on the Dakota Access Pipeline, in which Enbridge also has a 27.6% net interest, while introducing further egress optionality along our Mainline system.
Ultimately, said Enbridge executives, our liquids super system from Edmonton to Houston—via Superior, Chicago, Cushing, Patoka and many other points in between—is proving itself capable of largely supporting the market forecasts of 500,000 to 600,000 bpd in Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin supply growth by decade’s end.
“I’d say people have always underestimated what we can do with that super system,” remarked Enbridge President and Chief Executive Officer Greg Ebel.
While any net-new pipeline projects would require significant energy policy change in Canada, “these brownfield opportunities offer the quickest and most cost-effective way to adding close to 500,000 barrels a day of capacity to satisfy that near-term production increases forecasted out of the basin,” said Mr. Ebel.
With or without a new liquids pipeline reaching Western Canadian tidewater, “we have consistently talked about our southbound playbook . . . the south is where it’s at. Our customers prefer that direction,” noted Mr. Gruending.
“Integrated business models. Lots of big, efficient, long-lived refineries that are very competitive. And of course, less competition now from Venezuela and Mexico inbound heavy.”
"We’re proud to sanction Southern Illinois Connector. Maybe in baseball terms, that’s our leadoff hitter and we’re now on base. MLO1 (Mainline Optimization Phase 1) has just been to the plate. And MLO2 (Phase 2), continuing the analogy here, is in the batter’s box . . . and it’s got a bigger bat than we thought we had before. So, using joint venture partners, this is all coming together nicely. Hopefully we get the bases loaded."
Colin Gruending
EVP and President,
Liquids Pipelines
