October 2022, Vol. 249, No. 10
Editor's Notebook
(P&GJ) — With Enbridge’s Line 5 recently prevailing when a judge ruled against the state of Michigan’s lawsuit to shut down the petroleum pipeline, which runs beneath the Straits of Mackinac, the pipeline operator now finds itself in the odd position of being backed by the invocation of an international treaty for the second time.
Government
(P&GJ) — Numerous interstate pipeline companies have facilities that emit enough methane – in some cases much more than enough – to get hit with the new methane fee contained in the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) President Joe Biden signed in August.
(P&GJ) — For interstate pipelines, what was important about the Inflation Reduction Act was not just what was in the bill — the new methane fee — but what was not in the bill: the pipeline permitting reforms that Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W. Va.) had initially insisted be part of the bill.
Features
(P&GJ) — In the global climate change-driven future for the pipeline industry, there is a vision of net-zero emissions compressor stations to transition to clean energy.
(P&GJ) — The energy crisis gripping Europe has highlighted the dangers of unreliable imports and a rushed transition to renewables. The U.S. Northeast could soon face similar reliability issues as well, New England’s grid operator and a group of industry associations warned federal regulators.
(P&GJ) — Leak prevention, mitigation and detection are critical to ensure pipelines operate safely and reliably to protect the public, workers, the environment and pipeline assets.
(P&GJ) — A few years ago, a concerned citizen called local authorities to report an unusual odor. Responders followed established protocol and secured the area. The resulting investigation uncovered a buried pipe that was leaking. Documented mechanical damage had failed in a nearby pipeline.
(P&GJ) — The natural gas transmission pipeline is critical to national energy security. To prevent future process faults and to guarantee safe and continuous operation, it is essential to identify risk and forecast future equipment failure and its effects.
(P&GJ) — Minimizing the unscheduled downtime of a pipeline network is a crucial part of ensuring maximum throughput and therefore helping to ensure profitability. As an industry, it is known that one of the best ways to achieve this is to develop and maintain an effective risk assessment and an associated integrity management plan, acting on the outcomes of them and ensuring we have a good understanding of the current condition of the pipeline and the rate at which it is deteriorating.
(P&GJ) — Cybersecurity, both interpersonally and geopolitically, has been protested over the past few years, sparked by stories of basement hackers breaking into government agency websites, nation-states warring on the dark web and hacktivists acting in the name of civil disobedience for political and social change.
(P&GJ) — The pipeline industry has been placing focus and efforts on cybersecurity ever since last year’s Transportation Security Administration’s (TSA’s) security directives were first issued. The security directives (SDs) were a pushed rollout that caught many off-guard at the time—they knew it was coming but did not know the exact details.
(P&GJ) — Across the energy sector and critical infrastructure in general there are many assets and systems deemed “crown jewel assets” or “mission-critical systems.” Depending on who you ask, nearly every digital component they rely on is potentially at risk in some way.
(P&GJ) — The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) announced the revision and reissuance of its Security Directive regarding oil and natural gas pipeline cybersecurity. This revised directive will continue the effort to build cybersecurity resiliency for the nation’s critical pipelines.
(P&GJ) — As a critical medium for storing and transporting large volumes of renewably produced energy over long distances, hydrogen is expected to help fuel the drive to net-zero emissions. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), over the next 25 years, hydrogen demand is expected to grow six-fold from today’s levels.
(P&GJ) — During the first four months of 2022, the United States exported 74% of its LNG to Europe, compared with an annual average of 34% last year, according to EIA’s Natural Gas Monthly and EIA estimates.
(P&GJ) — Natural gas pipeline exports from West Texas to Mexico averaged 1.6 Bcf/d (45 MMcm/d) during May 2022 – the most pipeline exports from West Texas on record, U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) data showed.
Projects
Enbridge Line 5 Pipeline Dispute Headed to Federal Court, Cheniere to Form JV to Construct 43-Mile Gas Pipeline in Texas, TotalEnergies Moving Forward on Gas Pipeline in Argentina, Croatia to Build $182.3 Million Gas Pipeline, Doubling Capacity, France Favors Gas Terminals vs. $3 Billion in Pipeline Projects and more.
Tech Notes
Miros Wins Sensor Contracts for Subsea 7 Pipelay Support and Fiber-Optic Cable Used to Overcome Monitoring Challenges.
- Texas Waha Hub Gas Prices Plunge to Record Lows, Hit Negative Territory
- U.S. Appeals Court Strikes Down Controversial Biden Pipeline Safety Rules
- Williams Seeks Emergency Certificate to Operate $1 Billion Mid-Atlantic Gas Pipeline After Court Reversal
- Texas Oil Pipelines Near Max Capacity, Threatening Future Export Limits
- Energy Transfer Subsidiary Selects KTJV for Lake Charles LNG Export Project
- Saudi Arabia Looking to Expand Pipeline to Reduce Oil Exports via Gulf
- Report: Houston Region Poised to Become a Global Clean Hydrogen Hub
- Texas Startup Endeavors Again to Build First Major U.S. Oil Refinery Since 1977
- Puerto Bahia, Gasco to Build Liquefied Petroleum Gas Facility in Cartagena, Colombia
- Ukraine Approves $20 Billion Plan to Boost Renewable Energy to 27% by 2030