MPLX LP has announced it has purchased an eastern US Gulf Coast export terminal with 4 million bbls of third-party leased storage capacity and a 120 000 bpd dock from Pin Oak Holdings LLC, for approximately US$450 million.
The transaction will be financed with a combination of cash from operations and debt.
This facility has the capability to expand its storage capacity to 10 million bbls and is permitted for construction of a second 120 000 bpd dock. This growth potential is significant, as multiple pipelines and rail lines cross the property, and the terminal is positioned as an aggregation point for liquids growth in the region for both ocean-going vessels and inland barges. As the facility expands, this investment is expected to generate a mid-teens percent return.
The facility, which will be known as MPLX's Mt. Airy Terminal, is located on the Mississippi River between New Orleans and Baton Rouge, near nine lower-Mississippi refineries, including Marathon Petroleum Corp.’s Garyville refinery. The Mt. Airy facility can handle multiple refined products, as well as residual fuel and bunker products to provide optionality and flexibility of feedstocks and finished products in a single location.