Bakken Gas Capacity Set to Rise as Bison XPress Nears Full Service
Bakken gas takeaway is set to increase as TC Energy's Northern Border moves to bring its Bison XPress expansion online at full 300,000 Dth/d capacity, supported by new compression in North Dakota.
By Mary Holcomb, Lead Digital Editor
(P&GJ) — Northern Border Pipeline Company, a subsidiary of TC Energy, is seeking federal approval to place remaining facilities associated with its Bison XPress Project into service and begin operating the expansion at full capacity in North Dakota’s Bakken region.
In an April 8 filing with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), the company requested authorization to “place the remaining Project facilities into service and begin providing the full project capacity of 300,000 dekatherms per day (Dth/d).” This is equivalent to about 0.3 billion cubic feet per day.
The request represents a key late-stage milestone for the project, which received its certificate from FERC in October 2024 and began construction in April 2025 following approval of its implementation plan.
Pipeline Route and Information
For an overview of this project and other related infrastructure developments, visit Global Energy Infrastructure.
As part of the filing, Northern Border is also seeking approval to place new compression facilities into service at the existing Manning Compressor Station in Dunn County, North Dakota. The facilities include two 31,900-horsepower gas-fired turbine compressors, along with associated piping and related equipment designed to support increased throughput.
Mechanical completion of the compressor station facilities is anticipated in April 2026, with remaining work focused primarily on restoration and finishing activities. According to the filing, full site restoration is expected by mid-May, with additional work such as fencing and surface improvements extending later into the month.
Northern Border said construction progress has at times been affected by overlapping work activities and weather conditions, which limited access to portions of the site and delayed certain restoration efforts.
Despite those challenges, the company stated that it has no outstanding compliance issues tied to the project. “Northern Border has no outstanding or pending non-compliances, nor any identified problem areas issued by FERC or any other agency,” the company said in its filing.
If approved, Northern Border would be authorized to commence service on the project’s full capacity of 300,000 Dth/d, increasing natural gas transportation capability across its interstate system. The company also noted it intends to abandon the incremental expansion capacity by lease to Wyoming Interstate Company, L.L.C. upon startup.
The Bison XPress Project is designed to expand takeaway capacity from producing regions in North Dakota, supporting additional volumes as upstream activity and associated gas production continue across the Bakken.