Energy Transfer Partners confirmed this week that it expects its Mariner East 2 (ME2) natural gas liquids (NGL) pipeline, under construction in Pennsylvania, will be open by the end of the second quarter of 2018. The implication for the liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) industry is that propane and butane supply originating in the Marcellus and Utica shales will be diverted to the pipeline, leaving domestic distributors looking for alternate sources of supply.

The company had predicted a 2Q18 pipeline opening in November 2017, as the pipeline’s construction was stalled by accidents and lawsuits. The line had originally expected to open in the third quarter of 2017, but the opening was dela...