Integrity

Cybersecurity Update: Aligning Industry Standard’s Best Practices

(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.

'Powerful Explosions' Behind Nord Stream Leaks, Danish Police Say

A preliminary investigation of damages to the two Nord Stream gas pipelines in the Danish part of the Baltic Sea shows that the leaks were caused by "powerful explosions", Copenhagen Police said on Tuesday.

Putting Machine Learning to Use for Integrity Management

(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.

Integrity's Newest Ally: PRCI’s Mechanical Damage Strategic Research Priority

(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.

Novak: Russia Needs Permission for Its Ships to Probe Nord Stream Ruptures

Russia needs permission for its vessels to conduct investigations into explosions that damaged Nord Stream pipelines in the Baltic Sea, Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said on Friday.

German Attorney General Launches Investigation into Nord Stream Blasts

Germany's attorney general has launched an investigation into the blasts that hit the Russian Nord Stream pipeline network, allowing German investigators to collect evidence, a spokesperson said on Monday.

The Path to Achieving TSA Pipeline Cybersecurity Directive Compliance

(P&GJ) — Colonial Pipeline CEO Joseph Blount had to make two difficult decisions on May 7, 2021, after a ransom note was discovered by an employee in a control-room computer. First, he acknowledged that the pipeline system that provides close to 45% of the fuel for the East Coast had to be shut down. Second, he authorized the $4.4 million ransom payment.

Swedish Police Probe at Nord Stream Leak Site Strengthens Suspicion of Gross Sabotage

Suspicions of gross sabotage on the damaged Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea have strengthened following a crime scene investigation in the Swedish exclusive economic zone, the country's security police said on Thursday.

Kremlin Rejects Claims Russia Attacked Nord Stream Gas Pipelines

The Kremlin on Wednesday said claims that Russia was somehow behind a possible attack on the Nord Stream gas pipelines were stupid, adding that the United States had opposed the pipelines and its companies had made big profits supplying gas to Europe.

Mysterious Gas Leaks from Russian Pipelines to Europe Raise Sabotage Fears

Europe was investigating leaks in two Russian gas pipelines that churned up the Baltic Sea on Tuesday and raised concerns from Copenhagen to Moscow about sabotage on infrastructure at the heart of an energy standoff.

Williams Inks Multiyear Pipeline Services Deal with Eversource

(P&GJ) — The deal covers natural gas pipeline services in Connecticut and other locations over a period of three years with a two-year optional extension. Specifically, Williams will be tasked with the installation, maintenance, repair and other services associated with the natural gas distribution systems under the agreement.

Lake Superior Competing for P&GJ Award for Best Corrosion Technology

Lake Superior Consulting’s Atmospheric Corrosion Inspection iLINE App, which helps pipeline owners maintain continuous pipeline operations while adhering to Atmospheric Corrosion Inspections, which are required every three years by the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration.

Case Study: Improved Efficiency of Integrity Programs Using EMAT Technology

Various inline inspection (ILI) tools exist for different line operating conditions and defect morphologies. To address these varying conditions and morphologies, operators often need to run multiple ILI tools receiving results in separate or combined reports.

Integrity Management of RNG Pipelines

(P&GJ) — CenterPoint operates a natural gas transmission pipeline (NE4018) in Indiana that feeds the town of Huntington and the surrounding area. After internal discussions, CenterPoint decided to perform a baseline inspection on the sections of the pipeline upstream and downstream of the connection point to determine if the introduction of RNG has a detrimental effect on the pipeline.

ROSEN Group Secures 5-Year Contract for Pan Malaysia In-Line Inspection

ROSEN Group has won three packages for five years each to provide pipeline in-line inspection services for approximately 200 pipelines for a Petronas group of companies that includes Pan Malaysia.

Identifying, Minimizing Sinkhole in Pipeline Rights-of-Way

Kentucky and Pennsylvania have several areas within their borders susceptible to karst formations, including sinkholes and surface depressions. These states also have substantial resources available for pipeline companies to review when attempting to identify locales with sinkholes as well as areas that are prone to karst formations.

Nigeria Takes $1 Billion Hit in Q1 Revenue Due to Crude Oil Theft

Nigeria lost $1 billion in revenue during the first quarter of this year due to crude oil theft, the petroleum regulator said on Friday, warning the practice was a threat to the economy of Africa's top producer.

API, AOPL Report Shows Strengthened Pipeline Safety Performance

The Association of Oil Pipe Lines (AOPL) and the American Petroleum Institute (API) today released their annual 2021 Pipeline Safety Excellence Performance Report, which found that the safety of liquids pipelines increased across several key indicators.

Chevron 'Assessing' Status of Russian Terminal, Says Oil Pipeline Operating

Chevron holds a 15% stake in the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC), which owns a 1,510-km (938 miles) pipeline that carries about 1.2% of the world's oil from oilfields in Kazakhstan to an export terminal in Russia.

Non-Intrusive Method Using Induced Pressure Waves to Track Moving Objects Within Pipelines

November 2019 saw the dawn of a new era in real-time pig tracking when Halliburton Pipeline and Process Services successfully validated a live pig-tracking method based on patented transient wave theory, the foundation of their InnerVue suite of services.

Extending Our Capabilities to Integrity and Beyond

In-line inspection (ILI) has long been the go-to method to prove the integrity of pipelines but what happens after the inspection report has been delivered?

Burns & McDonnell’s Glaeser Looks to Pipeline Integrity Future

In this conversation with P&GJ, Scott Glaeser discusses ramifications of the Mega Rule, upgrading existing pipelines and cybersecurity.

Nigeria Losing 200,000 BPD to Pipeline Damage, Minister Says

Nigeria is losing an average of 200,000 barrels of oil per day - more than 10% of its production - to pipeline vandalism, the country's information minister said on Monday.

'Eye of fire' in Mexican Waters Blamed on Gas Pipeline Leak

Pemex said that a fire on the ocean surface west of Mexico's Yucatan peninsula Friday was caused by a gas leak from an underwater pipeline. Videos of the blaze went viral.

Life Extension of Pipelines with Crack Defects Using Composite Repairs

Composite repairs are being used widely to restore the integrity of pipelines impaired by wall thinning arising from corrosion anomalies.

Appropriate Methods for Repairing Pipelines

Over many decades now, the ever-growing network of on- and offshore pipelines has transported an increasing volume of refined petroleum products, industrial chemicals, crude oil and natural gas to commercial and household customers. North America is a case in point.

Interstates Worry About Inspecting Farm Taps

Will transmission pipelines now have to worry about complying with distribution pipeline regulations in addition to their own? That is the concern with one of the key provisions in a proposed rule from the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA).

CenterPoint Completes $240 Million Pipeline Modernization Plan, Seeks Cost Recovery

CenterPoint Energy's Southern Indiana Gas and Electric utility has asked regulators for a rate increase to recover the costs of its 7-year, $240 million natural gas pipeline modernization plan.

Overcoming Challenges of Pigging the “Unpiggable”

Accurate measurement and evaluation of the physical condition of oil and gas pipelines is critical to effective integrity management, as well as to the assurance of sustained pipeline safety.

Molecular Plasma Coating Process for Mitigating Deposit Adhesion

The deposition of solids, such as asphaltenes, scale and wax, in production systems can cause challenges to oil and gas producers.