Community & Environment
API-AOPL Annual Report Shows Liquids Pipeline Incidents Down Significantly
The American Petroleum Institute (API), in coordination with the Association of Oil Pipe Lines (AOPL) has released the 2019 API-AOPL Liquids Pipeline Performance Report, which details a 20% decrease in liquids pipeline incidents impacting people or the environment over the last five years despite increases in both pipeline mileage and barrels delivered.
Perspective: Impact of Trump’s Executive Orders Unclear
The executive orders signed Wednesday by President Trump are intended to make it easier for companies to build oil and gas pipelines, but experts aren’t sure yet if they will achieve their goal.
Trump Signs Orders to Ease Pipeline Approval, Construction
President Donald Trump on Wednesday signed executive orders intended to ease permitting and construction of pipelines and other energy infrastructure – an action that quickly drew the praise of industry organizations.
Police: 1 Dead, 15 Injured in North Carolina Gas Explosion
A gas explosion that partially collapsed a North Carolina building and set it ablaze Wednesday morning killed one person and injured more than a dozen others, police said.
Pipeline Opponents Ask Judge to Strike Down Trump Keystone XL Permit
Opponents of the long-stalled Keystone XL oil pipeline asked a federal court Friday in a lawsuit to declare President Donald Trump acted illegally when he issued a new permit for the project in a bid to get around an earlier court ruling.
Sunoco Settles Mariner East 1 Case with Pennsylvania PUC
Energy Transfer's Sunoco Pipeline subsidiary has reached a $200,000 settlement agreement with the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) over an 840-gallon ethane and propane leak from Mariner East 1 pipeline in 2017.
Beyond the Tribal Effect: Steps to Successful Permitting on Native American Lands
The playing field of environmental permitting can be complicated, exhaustive, and time consuming. Among the most challenging rules and regulations for the energy industry are those which were designed to uphold national obligations to tribal nations.
Mass. Budgets Statewide Review of Natural Gas Systems
Gov. Charlie Baker has signed a spending bill that funds a statewide examination of Massachusetts’ natural gas distribution system. The review was ordered after the Sept. 13 gas explosions that killed one person, injured 25 others and damaged or destroyed dozens of buildings in the Merrimack Valley.
Trump Signs New Permission for Keystone XL Pipeline
U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday signed a new permission for TransCanada Corp to build the long-delayed Keystone pipeline for imports of Canadian oil, replacing his previous permits in a fresh attempt to get around the blocking of the $8 billion project by a court in Montana.
Con Edison Halts Gas Hookups, Citing Interstate Pipeline Constraints
Consolidated Edison Inc said it will impose a moratorium on new natural gas service in parts of New York's Westchester County to protect system reliability due to limited space on interstate pipelines to the region.
Unwanted Night Moves
Whenever the subject of internal corrosion in pipelines comes up, it rekindles some unpleasant memories from my extensive time as a pipeline company spokesperson. Being part of an emergency response team for over 12 years was rewarding in many ways, but there was always an uneasy feeling when the phone would ring in the middle of the night.
SGA’s Chapman Promotes Clean Energy Future
P&GJ recently sat down with Adrian Chapman to discuss his new role as the Chair of the Board of Directors of the Southern Gas Association, and the outlook for SGA and the energy industry.
PHMSA and Advisory Group Finalizing New Safety Program
A Voluntary Information Sharing (VIS) advisory group, working with the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), voted to recommend a new, industry-wide safety reporting program in which employees, in a “no-fear” environment, would report pipeline operational and infrastructure risks and hazards. Reports would be “de-identified” and centralized. The goal is that potential problems would be found and corrected before they worsened, possibly becoming emergency situations.
NACE International Roundtable: Corrosion Management for Pipeline Integrity
To explain the value of corrosion management systems (CMS), how they work, and what programs and platforms are available to help organizations improve corrosion control programs, three experts in oil and gas pipeline corrosion management share their knowledge and experience with CMS. They are Michael Ames, Chapman Engineering; Gerry Koch, DNV GL; and David Kroon, Aegion Corporation.
S.D. Governor Targets Out-of-State Funding for Pipeline Protests
South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem said Monday that she's proposing legislation before construction begins on the Keystone XL oil pipeline that would create a way to go after out-of-state money that funds pipeline protests.
Panhandle Eastern Capacity Reduced by Missouri Pipeline Blast
Energy Transfer said it has reduced mainline capacity on its Panhandle Eastern Pipe Line system after a fiery rupture downstream of its Centralia Compressor Station. The blast caused no serious injuries, but power to several homes was interrupted, authorities said.
Enbridge Delays Line 3 Pipeline Opening in Minnesota by Year
Enbridge Energy is delaying the start-up of its planned Line 3 replacement crude oil pipeline through northern Minnesota by a year, until the second half of 2020.
Lithuania to Ask Belarus to Switch Nuclear Plant to Gas
Lithuanian Prime Minister Saulius Skvernelis will ask Belarus to convert its Russian-built nuclear power plant to gas provided by Lithuania’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal and a planned gas link between Lithuania and Poland.
Canada’s Energy Regulator Endorses Contentious Pipeline
Canada’s energy regulator endorsed a contentious Trans Mountain pipeline expansion on Friday that would almost triple the flow of oil from the Alberta oil sands to the Pacific Coast. The National Energy Board (NEB) said the expansion is in the country’s national interest but set out 16 new conditions.
Canadian National Train Derails in Manitoba, Leaks Oil
A Canadian National Railway Co train derailed in Western Canada and leaked an undetermined volume of crude oil. The incident comes as crude oil shipments by rail in Canada reached a record high due to full pipelines.
Pennsylvania Suspends all Permit Work for Energy Transfer
Pennsylvania environmental regulators said they have suspended all permit work for Energy Transfer projects because it failed to comply with an October order after an explosion on the Revolution natural gas pipeline in the western part of the state.
Section of Keystone Pipeline Shut Down after Leak
TransCanada Corp said a stretch of its Keystone crude oil pipeline from Nebraska to Illinois remained shut down on Monday after a leak was discovered last week near St. Louis, Missouri.
Colombia’s Cano Limon Pipeline Bombed for 6th Time this Year: Ecopetrol
Colombia’s Cano Limon pipeline was bombed again, state-run oil company Ecopetrol said, the sixth time it has been attacked this year.
San Francisco Gas Explosion Shoots Fire that Burns Buildings
A gas explosion in a San Francisco neighborhood shot flames into the air for hours Wednesday and burned five buildings, sending panicked residents and workers fleeing into the streets. It took utility crews more than two hours to put out the fire after private construction workers cut a natural gas line, igniting the towering flames.
4 Activists Arrested Attempting to Shut Down Oil Pipeline
Four climate-change activists from the Catholic Worker movement were arrested in an attempt to shut down an Enbridge's Line 4 oil pipeline in north-central Minnesota.
Subsea Bayesian Networks – Integrity and Risk Assessments
If high levels of safety and environmental protection in the subsea oil and gas sector are to be maintained, then understanding the risks involved is more important than ever. But it has never been more difficult necessary to optimize IMR activities than it is now.
France Makes Biogas Support Conditional on Cutting Cost
France is ready to provide &8-10 billion of subsidies for renewable gas but only if the industry can substantially lower its costs, the government said. Biogas is still four times the cost of natural gas imported by pipeline.
Mexico's Fuel Thieves Undeterred by Deadly Blast
Days after a fireball erupted near the Mexican town of Tlahuelilpan, killing at least 117 people pilfering gasoline from a pipeline, the area's fuel bandits were back in business.
Solutions to Liability Risks from Decommissioned Pipelines
One solution to protect pipeline companies from potential risks of their decommissioned pipelines comes from re-applying technology that proven in another sector entirely – the world of hard-rock mining.
PG&E Didn't Cause 2017 Wildfire, but Bankruptcy Still Looms
In a long-awaited report, state investigators say a 2017 wildfire that killed 22 people in Northern California was caused by a private electrical system, not equipment belonging to embattled PG&E.
- Price Gregory President Discusses Accomplishments, Semi-Retirement
- Nebraska Supreme Court Affirms Alternative Keystone XL Pipeline Route
- New York Vows to Fight FERC Ruling on Consitution Pipeline
- Court Bars PennEast from Seizing N.J. State Property for Pipeline
- Casualties in Fight over New Gas Pipelines: The Customers
