WBI Energy to Expand North Dakota Gas Pipeline System

MDU Resources Group, Inc. today announced that its subsidiary WBI Energy, Inc. intends to expand its Line Section 27 natural gas transportation system in the Bakken producing area in northwestern North Dakota.

The $27 million to $30 million expansion project will include construction of approximately 13 miles of 24-inch diameter pipeline and associated facilities. When the expansion is complete, the transportation capacity on WBI Energy’s Line Section 27 will exceed 600,000 dekatherms per day. The targeted in-service date for the project is fall 2018, which is the same timeframe for completion as WBI Energy’s $55 million to $60 million Valley Expansion project near Fargo, North Dakota.

“The Line Section 27 Expansion is a good project, right in our backyard, that underscores the continued demand for reliable natural gas transportation service in the Bakken,” said David L. Goodin, president and CEO of MDU Resources. “This spring, we added significant new compression to our system in the Bakken and surpassed 1 billion cubic feet per day of subscribed firm capacity, systemwide, for the first time. With these new projects in the Bakken, our natural gas transportation volumes continue to grow, and will be further enhanced by our Valley Expansion project in eastern North Dakota and western Minnesota. We remain optimistic about the growth opportunities at WBI Energy.”