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Kinder Morgan to start up second Texas condensate splitter in July

HOUSTON, June 25 (Reuters) - Kinder Morgan Inc (NYSE: KMI - news) aims to start up its second condensate splitter at its Houston Ship Channel complex next month, a spokeswoman said.

The 50,000 barrels per day splitter is slated to begin commissioning next week to test all systems leading to startup, the spokeswoman said.

Kinder Morgan started up the first of two 50,000 bpd splitters in late March after delays in delivery of manufacturer parts and weather issues pushed startup from mid-2014.

Due to the boom in output of condensate in the U.S. shale plays, the oil industry is investing up to $2.4 billion in condensate splitters to "split" the very light form of crude into components like jet fuel, diesel and naphtha, a building block for gasoline, to sell domestically or export.

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It is more sophisticated than an oilfield stabilizer, which removes natural gas liquids from condensate, but does not make finished motor fuels like a refinery.

BP Plc has a 10-year deal to buy all the output from both splitters.

Magellan Midstream Partners has a similar deal with Trafigura for a 50,000 bpd splitter under construction in Corpus Christi, Texas.

U.S. regulators say stabilized condensate qualifies as an exportable refined product, so companies can export it without having to run it through a splitter first.

Some planned splitter projects have been altered or put on hold as companies gauge whether to move forward or build cheaper stabilizers.

(Reporting by Kristen Hays; Editing by Marguerita Choy)