Spectra Energy Corp, headquartered in

Houston, Texas Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

, operated in three key areas of the

natural gas Natural gas (also fossil gas, methane gas, and gas) is a naturally occurring compound of gaseous hydrocarbons, primarily methane (95%), small amounts of higher alkanes, and traces of carbon dioxide and nitrogen, hydrogen sulfide and helium ...

industry: transmission and storage, distribution, and gathering and processing. Spectra was formed in late 2006 from the spin-off from

Duke Energy Duke Energy Corporation is an American electric power and natural gas holding company headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. The company ranked as the 141st largest company in the United States in 2024 – its highest-ever placement on the ...

. Spectra owned the

Texas Eastern Pipeline Texas Eastern Pipeline (TETCo) is a major natural gas pipeline which brings gas from the Gulf of Mexico coast in Texas and Louisiana up through Mississippi, Arkansas, Tennessee, Missouri, Kentucky, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, and Pennsylvania to deliv ...

(TETCo), a major natural gas pipeline which brings gas from the

Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico () is an oceanic basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, mostly surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north, and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States; on the southw ...

coast in

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

to the

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

area, which was one of the largest pipeline systems in the United States.FERC pipeline codes
Spectra also operated three oil pipelines. In February 2017, Spectra Energy merged into the Canadian company

Enbridge Enbridge Inc. is a multinational pipeline transport, pipeline and energy company headquartered in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Enbridge owns and operates pipelines throughout Canada and the United States, transporting crude oil, natural gas, and n ...

History

In 2002, Duke Energy acquired Westcoast Energy, a Canadian corporation, which owned Chatham, Ontario-based Union Gas, regulated under the 1998 Ontario Energy Board Act. On December 29, 2006

Standard & Poor's S&P Global Ratings (previously Standard & Poor's and informally known as S&P) is an American credit rating agency (CRA) and a division of S&P Global that publishes financial research and analysis on stocks, bonds, and commodities. S&P is co ...

added Spectra Energy Corp. to its S&P 500 Index, replacing

Parametric Technology PTC Inc. (formerly Parametric Technology Corporation) is an American computer software and services company founded in 1985 and headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts. The company was a pioneer in parametric, associative feature-based, solid com ...

Corp. (), a software company, which then moved to the S&P MidCap 400 list instead. Spectra began trading on the

New York Stock Exchange The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE, nicknamed "The Big Board") is an American stock exchange in the Financial District, Manhattan, Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It is the List of stock exchanges, largest stock excha ...

under the ticker symbol SE. On January 3, 2007, Duke Energy completed the spin-off of its natural gas business, including Westcoast Energy and Union Gas, to form Spectra Energy. Duke Energy shareholders received 1 share of Spectra Energy for every 2 shares of Duke Energy. By early August 2007, the S&P 500 breached its first 10% correction in over four years, and the shares of Spectra Energy Corp. sunk to their lowest point since trading had begun in December 2006, after the company announced that second quarter earnings had dropped 39 percent.Midday Leaders & Laggards: S&P 500
forbes.com, Associated Press, 08.06.07 In 2009, the company's financial performance had improved and had a total shareholder return of 38.3 percent. In 2011, Spectra Energy achieved record net income and surpassed its earnings target by more than 7 percent. And, in 2011, the company increased its annual dividend to $1.12, representing a nearly 8 percent increase.

Merger with Enbridge

Canadian pipeline operator Enbridge Inc. on September 6, 2016, agreed to buy Spectra Energy in an all-stock deal valued at about $28 billion.

Environmental record

For 2010, Spectra Energy was listed in the ''Newsweek'' green rankings, with a ranking of 280 out of the 500 largest publicly traded corporations in America. The listing was based on environmental impacts, green policies, and a reputation survey. Despite those high rankings, Spectra Energy's environmental record is not without incidents or government imposed penalties. Since 2006, the

Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) is a United States Department of Transportation agency created in 2004, responsible for developing and enforcing regulations for the safe, reliable, and environmentally sound trans ...

reports twenty-five separate incidents at Spectra's Texas Eastern Transmission Pipeline ranging from equipment failure to incorrect operations to pipe corrosion. Combined, those incidents caused $12,036,495 in property damage, and the US federal government fined Spectra a total of $403,100 over that period. The most recent incident for that pipeline occurred on May 31, 2015, when a piece of the pipeline in the

Arkansas River The Arkansas River is a major tributary of the Mississippi River. It generally flows to the east and southeast as it traverses the U.S. states of Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas. The river's source basin lies in Colorado, specifically ...

near

Little Rock, Arkansas Little Rock is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Arkansas, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arkansas. The city's population was 202,591 as of the 2020 census. The six-county Central Arkan ...

ruptured. Similarly the US federal government has imposed $154,700 in penalties since 2007 at Spectra's Algonquin Gas Transmission Pipeline for a single incident from 2010. An incident in 2010 from Spectra's Southeast Supply Header Pipeline did $561,563 in property damage, which led to it being fined a total of $201,300 by the US federal government. Spectra Energy may be considered the single largest private-sector source of

greenhouse gases Greenhouse gases (GHGs) are the gases in the atmosphere that raise the surface temperature of planets such as the Earth. Unlike other gases, greenhouse gases absorb the radiations that a planet emits, resulting in the greenhouse effect. T ...

in British Columbia. Since it co-owned DCP Midstream Partners with

ConocoPhillips ConocoPhillips Company is an American multinational corporation engaged in hydrocarbon exploration and production. It is based in the Energy Corridor district of Houston, Texas. The company has operations in 15 countries and has production in t ...

, Spectra Energy was reported in 2005 to emit 19,746 tons of

nitrogen oxides In atmospheric chemistry, is shorthand for nitric oxide () and nitrogen dioxide (), the nitrogen oxides that are most relevant for air pollution. These gases contribute to the formation of smog and acid rain, as well as affecting tr ...

and 9,286 tons of

volatile organic compounds Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are organic compounds that have a high vapor pressure at room temperature. They are common and exist in a variety of settings and products, not limited to house mold, upholstered furniture, arts and crafts sup ...

per year. As of August 2015, Canada's National Energy Board has fined Spectra's subsidiary Westcoast Energy a total of $122,300 for violations.

Current natural gas pipelines

* Algonquin Gas Transmission Pipeline * BC Pipeline, a pipeline running through

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

, Canada. *Big Sandy Pipeline, a pipeline in eastern

Kentucky Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...

. *Union Gas' Dawn to Parkway Transmission Pipeline in southwestern

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

, Canada. * East Tennessee Natural Gas Pipeline * Gulfstream Natural Gas Pipeline * Maritimes & Northeast Pipeline *Ohio Pipeline Energy Network (OPEN), a pipeline to be completed in late 2015. *Ozark Gas Transmission Pipeline, a pipeline running through

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the West South Central region of the Southern United States. It borders Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, and Oklahoma ...

, and

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

. *Salem Lateral Pipeline, a pipeline in

Salem, Massachusetts Salem ( ) is a historic coastal city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States, located on the North Shore (Massachusetts), North Shore of Greater Boston. Continuous settlement by Europeans began in 1626 with English colonists. Salem was one ...

that is under construction and was scheduled to be completed by November 2016. *Southeast Supply Header Pipeline, a pipeline running through

Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...

Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...

, and Alabama. * Texas Eastern Transmission Pipeline *The Union Gas Pipeline System, a pipeline system in Ontario through Spectra Energy's subsidiary Union Gas.

Proposed natural gas pipelines

*PennEast Pipeline, a pipeline to run through

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

and

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

. *NEXUS Gas Transmission Pipeline, a pipeline to run through

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

, and

. * Sabal Trail Transmission Pipeline, a pipeline to run from central

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

through southwest

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

Orange County, Florida Orange County is a county located in the central part of the U.S. state of Florida. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the county had a population of 1,429,908, making it the fifth-most populous county in Florida and the List of ...

. A minority stake in the venture is owned by NextEra Energy and

Current oil pipelines

*Express Pipeline, a pipeline running from Hardisty, Alberta, Canada to

Casper, Wyoming Casper is a city in and the county seat of Natrona County, Wyoming, United States. Casper is the List of municipalities in Wyoming, second-most populous city in the state after Cheyenne, Wyoming, Cheyenne, with the population at 59,038 as of th ...

. *Platte Pipeline, a pipeline running from Casper, Wyoming to Wood River, Illinois. *Sand Hills and Southern Hills Pipeline, a pipeline owned by DCP Midstream,

Phillips 66 The Phillips 66 Company is an American Multinational corporation, multinational energy company headquartered in Westchase, Houston, Texas. Its name, dating back to 1927 as a trademark of the Phillips Petroleum Company, assisted in establishing ...

, and Spectra Energy equally.

References

External links

Spectra Energy
{{Authority control Natural gas companies of the United States Natural gas pipeline companies Petroleum in Texas Companies based in Houston Energy companies established in 2006 Non-renewable resource companies established in 2006 2006 establishments in Texas Duke Energy 2017 mergers and acquisitions Enbridge 2017 disestablishments in Texas Energy companies disestablished in 2017