A satellite view of Conway, Kansas. (image: Google Maps)
So you know about Mont Belvieu, Texas, where about half of America’s propane is stored in underground salt caverns.
Delving deeper into the domestic propane storage scene, you’ll soon find yourself in Conway, Kansas, home to about 30 percent of the propane stored in the US. Conway is a small dot on the map, situated a few miles west on Route 56 from the city of McPherson. According to Wikipedia, “Conway is an unincorporated community in southwestern Jackson Township, McPherson County.”
Despite its isolated location, the Conway storage facility boasts the simple-but-cool-sounding nickname, “The Group,” and it can be inferred that the broad nickname speaks to how important Conway is to the propane world. As in Mont Belvieu, propane stored in Conway is also held in underground salt caverns dug out in the 1940s, and is a major pipeline distribution point for propane headed to the Midwest. Conway is also connected to the Cochin pipeline, which stretches from western Canada, meaning propane sent out into the Midwestern US could be made in the USA or Canada.
So if you’re passing through Kansas and want to check out a key hub in the North American propane supply network, stop into Conway!