Natural gas group Oneok Partners is boosting its natural gas processing capacity in the North Dakota oil patch with the opening of the company's Garden Creek II plant, the Oklahoma-based company said.
The new $300 million plant will be capable of processing 100 million cubic feet of natural gas daily.
Oneok's natural gas processing capacity in the region now exceeds 500 million cubic feet daily, five times more than just four years ago, chief executive Terry Spencer said in a statement.
"Increased natural gas processing capacity also will lead to a reduction of natural gas flaring in North Dakota," he added.
Roughly one-third of North Dakota's natural gas is wasted in a process called flaring, because the development of pipelines and processing facilities has not caught up with oil drilling in the state, according to a report by the Associated Press. Natural gas is a byproduct of oil production.
The company has other factories in North Dakota and expects to open its Garden Creek III plant by the end of the year, following a $360 million investment.
Last month, Oneok announced that it is planning to complete the seventh gas plant in the state, to be located in northeastern Mckenzie County, bringing its total investment in North Dakota to about $4 billion.
