For investors following the master limited partnership space, 2013 was an awfully busy year. An overwhelming 20 MLPs hit the market, raising billions of dollars in capital and giving investors more opportunity in the space than ever before.
While Foolish investors tend to give an initial public offering room to breathe before buying in, two of these "new" MLPs are backed by venerable companies that experienced energy investors have known for quite some time: Phillips 66 (PSX -0.66%) and Valero (VLO -0.32%).
These two refiners spun off Phillips 66 Partners (PSXP) and Valero Energy Partners (NYSE: VLP) last July and December, respectively, and unit prices have done nothing but climb ever since. Investors love that revenues at these two partnerships are tied to fee-based contracts with their mature parent-companies, and that their growth stories are transparent, both of which pave the way for solid distribution growth for years to come. I created the following slide show to help investors understand what these newer MLPs are and why they have so much potential.
