The
history of Enbridge speaks to the constant changes
in the oil and gas industry. Companies change names,
competitors can merge and diversify their industry
portfolio, or the company splits into various
groups. Enbridge is the case study of these changes
in a dynamic petroleum industry. In 1949, the
company began as the Interprovincial Pipe Line
Company, constructing a major pipeline to transport
oil from Western Canada to refineries in the east.
The main focus of the company remained on
transportation of oil and gas. By 1985, the system
was extended to include Port Credit, Ontario and
Montreal, Quebec. In 1985, Interprovincial Pipe Line
completed construction on the first buried pipeline
through permafrost in Canada's North. The pipeline
was constructed from Norman Wells to Zama, Alberta,
covering 870 kilometres.
Growth led to change with the
acquisition of Home Oil Company Limited in 1988. The
new company became Interhome Energy Inc. with
massive expansions to the existing pipeline. Many
name changes and splitting of departments happened
during the 1990s, indicating rapid growth for the
pipeline company. There were also sales of shares to
various interests in the marketplace creating the
widely held company. Investment groups include
Enbridge Energy Partners, L.P., and Enbridge Energy
Management, L.L.C. These groups are collectively
referred to as the Partnership. The Partnership
transports crude oil and liquid hydrocarbons through
common pipelines. Enbridge enjoyed growth in natural
gas and natural gas liquid transportation,
processing and marketing mostly in the United
States. In Canada, Enbridge Gas Distribution
distributes gas to more than 1.7 million customers
in Ontario, Quebec, New York State, and New
Brunswick. In January 2005, Enbridge acquired Shell
Gas Transmission for U.S. $613 million. This gave Enbridge interests in eleven natural gas
transmission and gathering pipelines in five Gulf of
Mexico offshore corridors that transport
approximately three billion cubic feet per day. The
gas acquisition comes as Enbridge celebrates
fifty-two years as a publicly traded company, though
many name changes and tremendous growth.
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