Operations

Energy Transfer Unit Charged with Environmental Crimes in Pennsylvania

The Pennsylvania attorney general's office on Wednesday charged a unit of Energy Transfer LP with nine counts of environmental crimes related to construction of the Revolution natural gas pipe in the western part of the state.

Aerial Surveys Detect Dozens of Methane 'Super-Emitters' in Permian

The facilities, which include pipelines, were observed as "persistently" emitting large volumes of methane over the three years of aerial surveys.

Regulatory Developments in Pipeline Cybersecurity

The Transportation Security Administration is overhauling its strategy for cybersecurity in the pipeline sector.

Inspecting Deepwater Risers, Flowlines on a West Africa Flowline Loop

Effective integrity management of subsea pipelines has been especially challenging due to the difficulty of pipeline access, safety and other considerations.

University of Houston’s Falcon In-Pipeline Leak Solution

A breakthrough in leak risk detection at oil pipe flanges comes from research by the University of Houston using a Saab Seaeye Falcon robot as a development platform.

Oil Flow Resumes in Kirkuk-Ceyhan Pipeline After Blast in Turkey

The flow of crude oil through the Kirkuk-Ceyhan pipeline has resumed, after it was halted on Tuesday due to a blast near the pipeline in the southeastern Turkish province of Kahramanmaras.

Responding to Failures with 4-Step ACER Analysis for Operators

Integrity management is typically seen as a preventative measure meant to manage the risks present on any given pipeline and avoid failures.

Methane Leak Detection Moving to Higher Plateaus

The U.S. government continues to look at rules or fees requiring companies to track and limit volumes of methane released into the atmosphere. Investment companies such as BlackRock are also keeping a close eye on sustainability practices such as methane reduction.

Field Coatings for Elevated Temperature Pipelines

Heat shrinkable sleeves have been used for field joint coatings all across the world since the 1960’s. The technology has been almost completely phased out in the United States due to CP shielding issues from disbondments and corrosion failures

Safety Techniques for Aboveground Natural Gas Pipelines

There are a variety of techniques used to enhance the safety of aboveground natural gas pipelines. Coatings to minimize corrosion are an example of a safety aspect used by natural gas operators.

American Petroleum Institute Wants Recognition for Methane Reductions

The American Petroleum Institute lobby group is seeking recognition of reductions in methane emissions by oil and gas producers as the Biden administration moves to regulate the greenhouse gas.

Caspian Pipeline Consortium Says it is Operating Normally

The Caspian Pipeline Consortium, a group which runs Kazakhstan's crude oil blend to export terminals, continues to operate normally amid the state of emergency.

TC Energy's 590,000-bpd Keystone Pipeline Resumes Operations

TC Energy's 590,000-barrels-per-day Keystone oil pipeline resumed operations after it was shut the previous evening for unplanned maintenance.

Artificial Intelligence and Pipelines – A Smart Way to Go

Today’s digital world defines so much of the global society from finances to socialization, education to work and play. It is no surprise that the energy sector, too, is increasingly digitized and data-driven.

United States Grand Jury Accuses Amplify Energy of Negligence in Oil Spill

A federal grand jury has accused Amplify Energy and two of its subsidiaries of illegally and negligently discharging oil during a pipeline break in California in October.

Proper Cleaning and Storage of Pipeline Pigs

Proper storage and maintenance are important to ensure the optimal performance and condition of urethane pigs.

Pipeline Blast Reported at Iran Gas Refinery, No Casualties

A gas condensate pipeline at a gas refinery in southwestern Iran exploded on Thursday after being hit by an excavator, Iranian news agencies reported.

Advancing Design for Pipeline Slug Catchers

Slug catchers are used at the terminus of large gas condensate transmission pipelines to catch large slugs of liquid, to hold these slugs temporarily, and to allow them to follow into downstream equipment and facilities at a rate at which the liquid can be properly handled.

Safer Operations with Geospatial Analytics

Geospatial analytics has come a long way from its inception in the early 80s. Today’s high-resolution satellites can survey each square foot of the entire earth’s surface and can do so daily.

Plastic Pipe Continuing to Play Key Role in Energy Industry

Much of today’s energy piping infrastructure is made of polyethylene, polyamide, and spoolable composite piping. More and more new piping systems are made from plastic pipe, but there is a lot of work to be done on the renewable energy front.

DIMP-Related Pipe Replacement Work Continues in Full Force US

While the amount of work to replace cast-iron and bare-steel pipe has declined in volume since the implementation of the Gas Distribution Integrity Management Program in 2009, there is still plenty of construction left to be done.

Produced Water: Path to Economic, Environmental Gains

Mostly groundwater naturally occurring deep in oil and gas reservoirs, produced water also can include water previously injected into the formation during well treatment or secondary recovery to increase production.

Implementation Struggles of PHMSA’s Fatigue Mitigation Regulations

Fatigue is one of a controller’s greatest threats. Despite restrictions that have transpired for monitoring and mitigating controller fatigue in the past decade, fatigue is not a new worry within the oil and gas industry.

Assistive Technologies Set to Transform Pipeline Projects

Increased attention is being focused on minimizing or removing human presence in extreme environments by using remote operations and assistive technologies for monitoring and decision support.

US to Release Oil from Reserves; OPEC+ Rebuffs Call for More Crude

The United States said on Tuesday it would release millions of barrels of oil from strategic reserves in coordination with China, India, South Korea, Japan and Britain to cool prices after OPEC+ producers repeatedly ignored calls for more crude.

Pennsylvania Fines Energy Transfer $2 Million for 2018 NatGas Pipe Blast

The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission approved a nearly $2 million settlement with a unit of Energy Transfer LP for a pipeline explosion and fire at its Revolution natural gas pipe in Western Pennsylvania in 2018.

Blast Hits Oil Pipeline in Southern Iran, No Casualties – TV

An oil pipeline in southern Iran exploded on Wednesday, Iran's state TV reported on Wednesday, citing aging infrastructure as the reason for the blast.

Russian Gas Flows to Germany via Yamal Pipeline Unchanged

Russian gas continued flowing via the Yamal-Europe pipeline to Germany at Thursday levels, preliminary data from German network operator Gascade showed, below volumes seen earlier in the week when Gazprom started to increase supplies to refill its storage.

Tight Deadlines, Imminent Concerns Result from Security Directives

The federal Transportation Security Administration is moving quickly to ramp up the ability of utilities and pipelines to defend themselves against future cyberattacks.

A Guide to New Robotics, Drone Technologies for Pipelines

Today, the pipeline industry can buy a wide range of technologies for automating, managing, monitoring, repairing and improving safety of pipeline infrastructure and operations.