Enbridge Gas Utah tells PSC it needs upstream capacity, eyes Ruby Pipeline gate station and 720‑psig corridor

Enbridge Gas Utah engineers told a Utah Public Service Commission technical conference that population and customer growth concentrated on the Wasatch Front will require additional upstream capacity and system upgrades, including exploring a Ruby Pipeline gate station and conversion of parts of its system to 720 psig to increase line‑pack flexibility.

The company’s engineering representative, Jeff Roberts, said the utility is seeing tapering customer-count growth but a recent jump in peak‑day demand driven largely by “one very large, industrial customer” added to the system. Roberts said the peak‑day number shared at the conference is an estimate while the company finishes hydraulic modeling.

Roberts said the company uses population projections from the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute to analyze long‑term demand and that most near‑term customer growth is in Utah County, with Eagle Mountain, Saratoga Springs, Lehi and American Fork among the fastest‑growing cities. “We are gonna need some additional capacity upstream from our transmission companies,” Roberts said, adding the utility is “entertaining the idea of a new gate station, coming off Ruby Pipeline up near Brigham City.”

Roberts said Enbridge has submitted a nonbinding expression of interest with Mountain West Pipeline to explore additional capacity that Mountain West expects to place into service in the Payson area in “late 2028, early 2029.” He described a company planning principle of increasing the system’s maximum allowable operating pressure in the corridor commonly called the 720 (720 psig) to provide line‑pack that helps absorb daily demand fluctuations.

Not all installed pipe is currently rated at 720 psig, Roberts said, but a “large portion” was installed with materials and testing that would allow conversion; other mileage will be addressed as feeder lines are replaced under Enbridge’s regular replacement schedule. Roberts also identified a localized constraint at the Saratoga tap, where feeder line 85 is largely at capacity and the gate station is “choked a little bit coming out of feeder line 85,” and said the company is considering upsizing, looping or other measures for that feeder.

Commissioner John Delaney asked for a graphic showing mileage that is “capable but not currently rated,” and Roberts replied that compiling that view would be a records‑research task and Enbridge could follow up. No formal votes or regulatory actions were taken at the conference.

The discussion was technical and forward‑looking: Roberts acknowledged his team is still completing modeling and said the timing for specific projects depends on system studies, upstream pipeline schedules and the feeder‑line replacement program. The company did not present an approved construction schedule or funding plan at the session.