September 2020, Vol. 247, No. 9

A recent survey of Pipeline & Gas Journal readers showed a clear majority of respondents believe the lingering effects of the coronavirus and recent developments concerning Dakota Access and Atlantic Coast pipelines have dealt a serious one-two punch to midstream businesses.

In early July, the U.S. pipeline industry faced down a one-two punch as the $8 billion Atlantic Coast Pipeline was canceled and a federal judge ordered the Dakota Access pipeline shut down.

While change in the natural gas industry is happening at an accelerated pace, GMRC is thriving by embracing flexibility, adaptability and facilitating learning in action.

The European Union’s ambitious decarbonization policies and plans for a green economic recovery will have repercussions on the continent’s pipeline networks, none more so than Holland’s.

The Environmental Partnership expanded its membership to midstream companies and released its second annual report, highlighting the industry’s progress in reducing emissions of methane and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and working together to protect the environment.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced it is dropping rules established in 2016 to limit methane emissions from oil and gas production and pipelines, a move that was applauded by the American Petroleum Institute but may have little effect on much of the industry.

According to S&P Global Market Intelligence, 120,498 MW of gas-fired capacity came online between 2008 and Aug. 1, 2019. Twenty percent of that was in 2018 and 2019 alone, and roughly 200 new gas plants have been proposed or are in development right now.

North American natural gas utilities have been spending nearly $4 million a day for programs to help residential, commercial and industrial customers make more efficient use of fuel.

Since its introduction in the early 2000s, phased array ultrasonic testing (UT) instruments have been embraced by NDT service providers for weld inspections in lieu of RT.

Today’s advanced phased array UT instruments and software give technicians the computing power to transform traditional 2-D inspection data into full-color 3-D visualizations

Maintaining the integrity of piping and pipeline infrastructure continues to be of vital importance to owners and operators, particularly as a higher number of pipelines move into their fourth and fifth decade of operation, far beyond their original design life.

Norway has given its big gas field in the Barents Sea a fairy tale name: Snøhvit (Snow White). Now the fairy tale continues with the next phase of development called Askeladd.

Since 2014, Ukraine has undertaken considerable reforms to reinforce macroeconomic stability and bolster the foundations of growth. After a significant contraction in 2014-2015, economic growth has picked up (2.4% in 2016-2017, 3.5% in 2018-2019). However, higher sustained economic growth is needed to deliver a durable improvement in living standards.

There are many advantages of combining multiple inspection technologies to effectively build a picture of the pipeline condition and how it changes over time.

Since 2011, Peoples Gas has been pursuing an aggressive system modernization program, including the replacement of 2,000 miles (3,200 km) of cast iron and ductile iron mains operating at 7 inches (178 mm) water column with modern polyethylene operating at 22 psi (1.5 bar).

Pipeline construction veteran Joe Pikas recalls a 50-year-old offshore construction project that highlights the differences between how engineering goals were met in the past, and how they are met today.

A new government report on the U.S. natural gas industry shows that local distribution companies (LDCs) supply 90% of natural gas to U.S. residential and commercial sectors, but pipeline companies handle the biggest volumes through direct delivery to electric power and industrial customers

Canada is the largest source of U.S. energy imports and the second-largest destination for U.S. energy exports behind only Mexico. Energy is an important component of trade between Canada and the United States.

With the Coronavirus crisis and its effect on upstream operations putting a damper on all segments of the midstream sector, some major projects in the Permian Basin appear to be moving forward, albeit at a slower and far more cautious pace.

As the oil and gas industry recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic, the ability for service companies to be responsive and nimble is vital.

One lawsuit has already been filed contesting the Trump administration’s July pro-pipeline changes to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) gave the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) new authority to discount greenhouse gas emissions when approving applications for new interstate pipeline construction.

The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) published a final rule in mid-July granting transmission pipelines the changes they requested after publication of a big final rule last October titled, “Safety of Gas Transmission Pipelines: MAOP Reconfirmation, Expansion of Assessment Requirements, and Other Related Amendments.”

Longtime pipeline engineering mainstay Marcelino Guedes Gomes has retired from Brazil oil giant Petrobras after more than 30 years, but he has no intention of leaving behind the work he loves. Guedes Gomes has co-founded PipelineBrazil, with the goal of improving pipelines in terms of safety and imaginative design ideas.

Equitrans Says Mountain Valley Remains on Schedule for Early 2021

Dominion Energy announced a reorganized executive leadership team after the cancellation of Atlantic Coast Pipeline and sale of its natural gas transmission and storage assets to an affiliate of Berkshire Hathaway.