Key Points
Energy Transfer postponed the operational date of its New Mexico pipeline.
But that delayed project represents a tiny percentage of its infrastructure.
Energy Transfer (NYSE: ET), one of the largest pipeline companies in the U.S., recently postponed the target operational date for its Green Chile Project in New Mexico from Aug. 2026 to Feb. 2027. That delay was caused by regulatory setbacks, land rights disputes, and the loss of its fast-track federal application status amid concerns about its impacts on historical sites.
That sounds like a major setback, since the Green Chile Project was designed to supply up to 400 million cubic feet of natural gas daily to Bloom Energy's fuel cells for Project Jupiter, a massive AI data center campus built by Oracle and OpenAI. But as a long-term Energy Transfer investor, I'm not too worried about this delay.
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It's a tiny part of its infrastructure
The Green Chile Project's pipeline is nearly 18 miles long, but Energy Transfer operates over 140,000 miles of pipeline across 44 states. That 400 million cubic feet might sound like a lot, but Energy Transfer transports over 32 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day through its pipelines. Therefore, this project is just a drop in the pond compared to its massive business.
Energy Transfer has also overcome similar regulatory challenges with its Dakota Access, Rover, Mariner East, and Revolution pipelines, but it eventually completed those projects. That's why I'm not worried about this delay -- and why I still think it's a great long-term income investment.
Leo Sun has positions in Energy Transfer. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Bloom Energy and Oracle. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.