A new plant projected to process 200 million cubic feet of natural gas per day is coming to the Grady/Stephens county area and local legislators say it will provide an economic boost.
In the announcement from ONEOK partners, the company revealed this new facility would focus on obtaining natural gas from the south central Oklahoma Oil Province, or the SCOOP shale play. The company announced the facility would be completed by the end of 2016.
“This is a tremendous announcement for our part of the state,” said Rep. Scott Biggs, R-Chickasha. “This plant will increase the state’s ability to obtain natural gas from the SCOOP play, which is a massive bed of gas right under out feet here in south central Oklahoma. The citizens of Grady and Stephens counties will benefit from the new operation going on here and I’m proud that ONEOK is increasing its presence in this part of the state.”
The facility, known as the Knox plant, will see heavy investment in its operations. Between $365 million to $470 million will be spent over the course of the next two years to construct the facility, create infrastructure for the facility and the building of natural gas pipelines and compression stations for the operation.
“This announcement is another example that pro-growth policies enacted by the Legislature are paying dividends for Oklahoma,” said Senator Corey Brooks, R-Washington. “I’m very excited about ONEOK’s plans to increase their investment in our corner of the state. This facility will bring high-quality, high-paying jobs to our district, and be a tremendous boost to the local economy. It is critical that we continue our support of policies that encourage companies like ONEOK to grow their business within our state, employ Oklahomans, and leverage our tremendous natural resources to further our economic momentum.”
“I am excited to hear the announcement of ONEOK’s investment in our state,” said Senator Ron Justice, R-Chickasha. “This is further evidence of their commitment to and confidence in the future of the industry and our State. This is a tremendous investment that will be a benefit to this area as well as to our state for many years.”
Once the Knox plant becomes fully operational, it is expected to increase the company’s natural gas processing in the region to 900 million cubic feet per day.
