The energy world has been turned upside down in 2020 by COVID-19, resulting in the cancellation, scaling back, or deferral of numerous pipeline projects in both the U.S. and Canada. One such deferral involved a planned NGL pipeline that would run through the heart of Alberta’s Montney and Duvernay plays. Originally slated to begin construction earlier this year, a one-year deferral was announced back in May by the joint venture of Canadian midstream players Keyera and Energy Transfer Canada, the latter of which is itself a JV of Energy Transfer and KKR. Since then, a stabilization in energy markets and signs of recovery in Alberta NGL production has provided the co-developers with the confidence to commit to a construction start in 2021. Today, we review the project and what has changed to get it back on track.
Up until the early months of 2020, Alberta had been experiencing strong growth in its production of NGLs such as propane, normal butane, pentanes-plus (natural gasoline), and condensate (field condensate). Powered by drilling that focused on liquids-rich gas in unconventional plays like the celebrated Montney and Duvernay, this growing supply of NGLs was quickly being lapped up by homegrown industries such as the oil sands (where shippers use condensate and pentanes-plus as diluent) or rising exports of LPG (propane and butane).
That all came to a screeching halt when the pandemic unsettled global energy markets earlier this year and helped to crater energy prices and demand. Alberta was not immune to COVID’s disruptive effects — there was a sharp pullback in pretty much all forms of energy production there, as well as a slowdown of drilling for NGL-rich gas. However, it was not just production and drilling that were affected, but related infrastructure projects meant to capitalize on transporting growing supplies, such as NGLs, that ended up being deferred or scaled back.
Canadian crude output is rising, requiring new export routes. As traditional pathways face constraints, the U.S. Rockies—especially the Guernsey, WY hub—are emerging as key corridors for moving Canadian heavy crude to downstream markets, including the Gulf Coast.
Join Backstage Pass to Read Full Article
About the song
"Back In Business" was written by Stephen Sondheim and was performed by singers Janis Siegelm, Cheryl Bentyne, and Lorraine Feather — all from Manhattan Transfer — in a scene in the movie, Dick Tracy. This version of the song did not appear in any of the three movie-related albums released, however. A different song with the same title did appear on Madonna's I'm Breathless: Music From and Inspired by the film Dick Tracy. Madonna wrote the song with her producer, Patrick Leonard. She also starred in the movie as the character, Breathless Mahoney. The official soundtrack album of the film features songs by Andy Paley, recorded by various pop artists, there was no “Back in Business” among them. Instead, Danny Elfman's album release from the movie features his orchestral score and incidental music from the film.
Sondheim wrote five songs for the movie, but he declined to score the film for director Warren Beatty, with Danny Elfman assuming those duties. "Back In Business" was one of the songs featured in the 1992 production of the Sondheim revue, Putting It Together, which was staged in Oxford, England. It was also used, along with three other Sondheim songs from Dick Tracy, in the 1999 Broadway production of Putting It Together, a retrospective of Sondheim’s work. The Sondheim song, "Sooner or Later (I Always Get My Man),” sung in Dick Tracy by Madonna, won an Academy Award for Best Original Song.
Dick Tracy is a 1990 action crime film based on the comic strip by the same name by Chester Gould. Directed by Warren Beatty, the film starred Beatty, Al Pacino, and Madonna. It was released in June 1990.
Stephen Sondheim is an American composer and lyricist known for his work in musical theatre — among other things, he wrote the lyrics for West Side Story and Gypsy and was the composer and lyricist for Sweeney Todd. He has won one Academy Award, eight Tony Awards, eight Grammy Awards, a Pulitzer Prize, a Laurence Olivier Award, and a Presidential Medal of Freedom. Now 90 years, he continues to write.
