West Texas Highway

Crude oil producers in the prolific Permian Basin have plenty of options to move their barrels, especially since pipeline capacity currently exceeds production, but not every route out of the basin is equal. One of the hottest destinations for Permian crude is Houston, which boasts an attractive mix of refining and export demand.

The Permian-to-Houston crude pipelines have an overall capacity of 2.8 MMb/d, which should return to 3 MMb/d once M2E-2 comes back online. Our new report looks at what makes each of the existing pipelines unique, their history, supply points, flows and delivery points, challenges and advantages.

Key takeaways from the report include:

• BridgeTex Pipeline is the only conduit serving Houston that is still underutilized
• Few pieces of crude oil infrastructure have been able to adapt to change like Longhorn Pipeline
• For many producers, Midland to ECHO 2’s return to crude service can’t come too soon
• ExxonMobil’s strategy for Wink to Webster Pipeline enhances its control of Permian crude

“West Texas Highway” is included in RBN Energy’s 2025 Drill Down report series, a suite of reports covering many of the key issues expected to impact the markets for crude oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids. Drill Down reports are part of RBN Backstage Pass™ premium resources that also include Blog Archive Access, Spotcheck Indicators, Market Fundamentals Webcasts, Get-Togethers and more. By subscribing to RBN’s Backstage Pass™ Premium Services, you plug into our network and get direct access to our premium resources.