Oct. 19--Kinder Morgan Energy Partners and Sempra Energy have customer commitments for at least half the capacity of their planned $3 billion, 1,500-mile natural gas pipeline out of the Rockies.

This puts the companies a step closer to being the first to build a major pipeline connecting the natural gas-rich Rocky Mountains with other U.S. markets clamoring for more supplies.

Two divisions of Calgary, Alberta-based EnCana Corp. have agreed to negotiate for as much as 500 million cubic feet per day of capacity on the pipeline.

The project will also incorporate a 330-mile pipeline that an EnCana subsidiary, Entrega Gas Pipeline, recently started to build in Colorado.

Combined with commitments from Sempra for 200 million cubic feet of capacity, the Wyoming Natural Gas Pipeline Authority for another 200 million cubic feet and a handful of other big users, the pipeline has customers for about half its planned 2 billion cubic feet per day capacity.

"Projects are proposed and open seasons are conducted frequently, but pipelines don't get built without real shipper support," said Scott Parker, president of Kinder Morgan's Natural Gas Pipelines Group. "Only one major pipeline project will be built out of the Rockies in the short term, so I think this commitment says ours is way in the lead and coming down the homestretch."

The tentative commitments from customers have Kinder Morgan and Sempra moving forward with a request to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to begin the environmental review process for the project.

At least two other projects to build pipelines from the Rockies to other markets have been announced. El Paso Corp. started soliciting bids from potential customers this month for a planned 1,000-mile pipeline project to move up to 2 billion cubic feet per day of natural gas from the Rocky Mountains to the Midwest and East Coast.

And in March, Williams Cos. proposed an expansion of its system to link Wyoming, Colorado and Utah fields with the Northwest.

The Kinder Morgan-Sempra project, called the Rockies Express Pipeline, will be a 42-inch line running from the Wamsutter Hub in southwest Wyoming to eastern Ohio. An open season for the pipeline - - a time for companies to negotiate final commitments for capacity - - won't be held until later this year.

The company considers the open season a formality, Parker said, as it plans to get agreements from companies prior to conducting open season.

Kinder Morgan would own two-thirds of the project, which would likely be financed with 60 percent equity and 40 percent debt.

The Wyoming Natural Gas Pipeline Authority said it may use its ability to issue up to $1 billion in construction bonds to fund some of the project.

"Having the state of Wyoming behind us on the project means we could have a very low cost of financing," Parker said.