Vector

Description

Section updated: October 2024

Disclaimer

The Pipeline Profiles interactive maps provide publicly accessible information about CER-regulated pipeline systems. These maps provide information about the pipeline systems we regulate and allow the user to zoom in and view nearby communities and other geographic features.

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Terms of Use

The Canada Energy Regulator (CER) provides this information for personal and non-commercial uses. The information contained in this map is based on externally sourced information. The CER makes no representations regarding the accuracy of this information. The CER accepts no responsibility or liability for inaccuracies, errors or omissions in the data and any loss, damage or costs incurred as a result of using or relying on the map data in any way.

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Sources and Description

Sources

The information contained in these maps is obtained from the following sources: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) (U.S. Pipelines); Environmental Systems Research Institute, Inc. (ESRI) (The Community Map of Canada); Geomatics Data Management Inc. (GDM) (CER-regulated pipelines); Government of Canada: Natural Resources Canada, and Surveyor General Branch (Indigenous Lands); Government of Canada: Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada (Modern and Historic Treaties); North American Cooperation on Energy Information (NACEI) (natural gas underground storage).

Description

The Canadian portion of the Vector pipeline system extends from the Ontario/Michigan border to Dawn, Ontario. Dawn is the largest natural gas storage area in Canada.

History and Overview

  • The Vector pipeline system is approximately 560 km long, including the U.S. and Canadian portions. The Canadian portion is approximately 25 km long.
  • It crosses the international boundary between Michigan, U.S., and Ontario, Canada, at a point in the St. Clair River.
  • The Vector pipeline system was placed into service in December 2000.

Supply and Markets

  • The Vector pipeline system transports natural gas between Joliet, Illinois, and the Dawn Hub in Dawn, Ontario. There are numerous receipt and delivery points along the pipeline, including several in Ontario.
  • The Dawn Hub is a complex of storage facilities where natural gas is injected in the summer and withdrawn in the winter when demand for home heating increases. It receives natural gas from several major supply basins, and this gas can be delivered via numerous pipelines to markets in eastern Canada, the U.S. Northeast, and the U.S. Midwest.
  • The Dawn Hub has approximately 280 billion cubic feet of storage capacity, one of North America’s largest natural gas storage facilities.
  • Gas supply for the Vector pipeline is primarily sourced from the market hub at Joliet, Illinois. The natural gas in this hub comes from western Canada and the U.S. Gulf Coast, Mid-Continent, and Rocky Mountain producing areas.
  • The Joliet market hub is interconnected with several large natural gas pipelines, including the Alliance pipeline and the Foothills pipeline.
  • The Vector pipeline can also flow gas westward from Appalachia production and storage providers in Michigan to markets throughout the U.S. Midwest.

Reconciliation Content

  • We recognize that all lands are the traditional and/or treaty territories of Indigenous Peoples, however, in this data set, only treaty lands are represented due to data availability.
  • For more information about how the traditional territories of Indigenous Peoples in a region are defined, it is best to consult First Nation and Metis governments directly.
  • For more information about traditional territories and potential or established treaty rights, you may also consult the Aboriginal and Treaty Rights Information System.

Section updated: October 2024

Pipeline ownership
Pipeline name Vector pipeline
CER-regulated company Vector Pipeline Limited Partnership
Parent company Enbridge Inc.
Pipeline attributes
Group for financial regulationFootnote 1 Group 2
Commenced operations 2000
Location The Canadian portion of the Vector pipeline system extends from the Ontario/Michigan border to Dawn, Ontario. Dawn is the largest natural gas storage area in Canada.
CER-regulated pipeline length (km)Footnote 2 25 km
Transported commodity Natural gas
Pipeline capacity Approximately 1.745 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d)
Major interconnected pipelines Vector pipeline (U.S. section)

Section updated: October 2023

Markets

The Vector pipeline system transports natural gas between Joliet, Illinois, and the Dawn natural gas storage hub located in Dawn, Ontario. There are numerous receipt and delivery points along the Vector pipeline, including several in Ontario. Gas supply for the Vector pipeline is primarily sourced from the market hub at Joliet, Illinois. The natural gas in this hub comes from western Canada and the U.S. Gulf Coast, Mid-Continent, and Rocky Mountain producing areas. The Joliet market hub is interconnected with several large natural gas transmission pipelines, including the Alliance pipeline and the Foothills pipeline.

The Dawn Hub is a complex of storage facilities where natural gas is injected in the summer and withdrawn in the winter when demand for home heating increases. It receives natural gas from several major supply basins and this gas can be delivered via numerous pipelines to markets in eastern Canada, the U.S. Northeast, and the U.S. Midwest.

The Vector pipeline can also flow gas westward from Appalachia production and storage providers in Michigan to markets located throughout the northern U.S. Midwest.

A list of shippers on Vector pipeline is available. The report provides data on how this pipeline is used and who uses it.

Transportation costs (tolls)

Section updated: August 2024

A toll is the price charged by a pipeline company for transportation and other services. Tolls allow pipeline companies to safely operate and maintain pipelines. Tolls also provide funds for companies to recover capital (the money used to build the pipeline), pay debts, and provide a return to investors. The interactive graph below shows the tolls on the pipeline since 2001.

Tolls on the Vector pipeline differ based on service type and contract length. The 15-year firm service tolls, which are illustrated in the graph below, are calculated annually based on a toll settlement negotiated between Vector and its shippers. The 10-year firm service tolls are negotiated between each shipper and Vector, with the maximum capped at 115% of the 15-year firm service toll. For firm service of less than 10 years and for interruptible service, tolls are also negotiated between each shipper and Vector and capped at 300% of the 15-year firm service toll. 

Vector pipeline uses a ‘postage stamp’ tolling model in which the toll is the same for all movements between the international boundary near Sarnia, Ontario, and the Dawn Hub, regardless of the distance travelled.

Vector Pipeline Limited Partnership is subject to Group 2 financial regulation. Accordingly, the tolls are regulated by the CER on a complaint basis.

Official CER documents related to the traffic, tolls and tariffs for the Vector Pipeline are available: Vector Pipeline Limited Partnership regulatory documents (tolls and tariffs) [Folder 274378].

Data Source and Description

Data Source: Open Government

Description: The above chart displays tolls data for the pipeline system.

Abandonment funding

Section updated: October 2024

The CER requires all pipeline companies to set aside funds to safely cease operation of their pipelines at the end of their useful lives. In 2013, VPLP estimated it would cost $4.75 million to do this for the Vector Pipeline. In 2019 this was updated to $8.5 million. In 2024, this number was revised to $7.7 million. These funds are being collected and set aside in a trust. Collection period end date is December 31, 2054.

Table 1: AVector Pipeline’s abandonment trust fund balance
  2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Trust fund balance ($) 860,000 1,141,000 1,317,000 1,270,000 1,638,000

Official CER documents related to abandonment funding can be found here, sorted by year and by company: abandonment funding documents [Folder 3300366].

Financial information

Section updated: October 2024

Pipeline companies report important financial information to the CER quarterly or annually. A solid financial position enables companies to maintain their pipeline systems, attract capital to build new infrastructure, and meet the market’s evolving needs. The data in this table comes from VPLP’s Audited Financial Statements [Folder 282506].

Table 2: Vector Pipeline financial data
  2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Revenue (million $) 9.3 8.8 8.7 12.3 16.2 16.2 8.7 7.5 9.6
Expenses (million $) 3.2 3.7 3.9 4.3 5.6 3.3 4.4 4.2 4.5
Net income (million $) 5.5 4.9 4.6 7.5 9.9 12 3.6 2.7 4.4
All assets (million $) 34 45.1 45.9 45.9 46.6 43.7 39.7 37.7 36.5

Disclaimer

The financial information presented in Table 2 reflects regulatory information prepared by each CER-regulated pipeline company and filed quarterly or annually with the CER. This information is filed to inform shippers, the CER and other interested parties on pipeline revenues and expenses and is used in monitoring pipeline transportation costs. Methodologies used in the preparation of this financial information may reflect regulatory decisions and guidance and unique negotiated agreements between a pipeline company and its shippers and interested parties. These methodologies, and the resulting financial information presented, may not follow established accounting principles used in other corporate reporting, and may not be comparable between different CER-regulated companies. For more information, please see the regulatory documents in CER’s REGDOCS and any associated notes contained within them.

Safety and environment

Section updated: November 2024

Section updated quarterly (early March, mid-May, mid-August and mid-November)

Section updated: November 2024

Conditions Compliance

Every pipeline company in Canada must meet federal, provincial or territorial, and local requirements. This includes Acts, Regulations, rules, bylaws, and zoning restrictions. Pipelines are also bound by technical, safety, and environmental standards along with company rules, protocols and management systems. In addition to these requirements, the Commission may add conditions to regulatory instruments that each company must meet. Conditions are project-specific and are designed to protect public and the environment by reducing possible risks identified during the application process.

Condition compliance is part of the CER's oversight and enforcement action is taken when required.

Conditions can be related to a specific region, or apply to the pipeline project as a whole. The map below displays the number of in progress and closed conditions mapped to economic regions as defined by Statistics Canada.

Conditions can typically be either in-progress or closed. The CER follows up on in-progress conditions.

In-Progress

This status refers to conditions that continue to be monitored by the CER. This happens when:

  • condition filings have not yet been received by the CER; or,
  • filings have been received but are under review or do not yet meet requirements; or,
  • a project is not completed and it has conditions, which have not been met; or,
  • a project has a post-construction condition, but a requirement has not yet been completed; or,
  • some conditions may be active indefinitely or refer to the continued operation of a pipeline.
Closed

This status refers to:

  • condition requirements that have been satisfied, and no further submissions from the company are required; or
  • conditions whose filings or actions apply to a specific phase that have been fulfilled as the phase is completed (i.e. a specific filing during construction phase). Note: comments on the required actions can still be received.

No conditions data

There are no reported conditions for Vector Pipeline. If data becomes available, or conditions are issued by the commission, they will show up here.

Have you checked out the CER's interactive conditions data visualization? This tool offers a deep dive into the CER's conditions compliance data and process, exploring conditions across all CER regulated companies by keyword, project, and location.

Emergency management

Section updated: January 2025

The CER checks to make sure companies are keeping pipelines safe by doing inspections, in-depth safety audits, and other activities. Yet, even with these precautions, an emergency could still happen. Sound emergency management practices improve public safety and environmental protection outcomes, and provide for more effective emergency response.

The CER holds its regulated companies responsible for anticipating, preventing, mitigating, and managing incidents of any size or duration. Each company must have an emergency management program that includes detailed emergency procedures manuals to guide its response in an emergency situation. We oversee the emergency management program of a regulated company’s projects as long as they operate.

The CER requires companies to publish information on their emergency management program and their emergency procedures manuals on their websites so Canadians can access emergency management information.

To view Vector’s Emergency Response Plan, go to Union Gas Pipeline Safety website.

Footnotes

Section updated: October 2024