US firm Jupiter MLP secures backing for Gulf Coast project

HOUSTON, Mar 03 (Reuters): JupiterMLP LLC, one of several companies proposing to build oil export terminals along the US Gulf Coast, has secured new financial backing from a global private equity firm, an executive said on Thursday, even as it faces two separate lawsuits, including one for breach of contract.

Last October, Jupiter MLP said it had secured financing to build a 650-mile (1,046 km) oil pipeline from West Texas to the Gulf Coast. It has also proposed an export terminal near Brownsville, in South Texas. Charon System Advisors agreed to fund the pipeline construction, it said at the time.

It has since been sued by Occidental Petroleum Corp, which claimed a JupiterMLP affiliate "continues to hold on to millions of dollars that belong to Occidental" despite a promise to pay the money from an expected financing, according to a Feb 12 lawsuit filed in Harris County district court.

Macquarie Group Ltd separately sued in January for breach of contract seeking $17.4 million for a storage contract termination and for unpaid bills for crude oil sales.

Spokespeople for Occidental and Macquarie declined to comment on the lawsuits.

Albert Johnson, president of Jupiter Pipeline, declined in an interview this week to comment on the disputes. However, he said the company has "secured a large equity commitment from a global private equity firm," but declined to identify the investor or disclose the amount of the commitment.