El Paso Corp still sees Ruby pipeline open in 2011

LOS ANGELES, May 6 (Reuters) - El Paso Corp's Ruby natural gas pipeline, a proposed 680-mile line running from Wyoming to Oregon, is still expected to open in 2011 as planned, despite PG&E Corp's (PCG.N: Quote, Profile, Research) withdrawal from the project, an El Paso spokesman said on Tuesday.

The spokesman, Bruce Connery, said El Paso will continue to look for partners in the pipeline, which has a planned capacity of 1.2 billion cubic feet per day. While some of the company's pipelines are fully owned by El Paso, Connery would not say if the company would go ahead with Ruby if it could not find partners. PG&E was to take a 25.5 percent stake.

The cost of the project is pegged at more than $2 billion. PG&E Chief Executive Peter Darbee said on Tuesday Ruby's cost projections were running higher than anticipated.

PG&E is still going to take 375 million cubic feet per day of gas deliveries from Ruby, Connery said.

The pipeline is meant to serve the California natural gas market, which supplies both power plants and homes. (Reporting by Bernard Woodall; editing by John Wallace)