S&P: Upstream MLP Parents Less Likely To Abandon Midstream

Upstream MLPs are more likely than midstream MLPs to be abandoned by their upstream parent should they face financial difficulty, according to Standard & Poor's energy-credit analyst David Lundberg. Why? Strategic importance to the parent, he said recently at an S&P energy conference in Houston. "Do we believe the C-Corp will have strong incentive to support their MLPs in a time of distress?" For MLPs with upstream assets, the answer is likely no, he said.