May 2017, Vol. 244, No. 5

Associations HomeServe USA, a provider of home emergency repair service plans, is partnering with the American Public Gas Association to enable APGA’s more than 700 member companies to offer customers access to a suite of energy-related repair service programs, including  gas piping systems, water ..

Natural gas utilities are actively implementing programs to replace aging infrastructure and contractors are performing the majority of this work. The growth in spending cannot be sustained due to a shortage of experienced workers. The Distribution Contractors Association (DCA) and its members have..

About the same time in early February that one part of the U.S. federal government was freeing up a stalled multibillion-dollar interstate oil pipeline in the Midwest for Texas-based Energy Transfer Partners (ETP), another part of the Trump administration gave the greenlight to ETP’s Rover Pipeline ..

It’s clear the propane market in the United States has been strongly influenced by the abundance of natural gas. According to Propane Resources, a Kansas City-based propane industry consultancy, the U.S. was importing about 100,000 bpd of propane 10 years ago; today, it’s an exporter of 1.1 MMbpd of..

The INGAA Foundation held its Spring 2017 Meeting Mar. 29-31 in Las Colinas, TX.  Another attendance record was established with over 375 gas pipeline industry representatives from operators, contractors, and key product and service providers. INGAA Foundation 2017 Chair Thomas Hutchins (Vice Presi..

Canadian Natural Resources Limited (Canadian Natural) is an oil and natural gas production company with operations in Western Canada, the U.K. portion of the North Sea and offshore Africa. Technology plays an important part of ensuring safe, effective and efficient operations at Canadian Natural, wh..

An in depth look at all the hurdles the Dakota Access pipeline construction project had to face before finally shipping crude oil earlier this year

The federal regulatory code governing natural gas pipeline design, operations and maintenance came into effect in about 1970 (some U.S. states had regulatory codes governing these activities in effect prior to 1970). I say “about” because, as with any regulatory codes, it takes time for operators to..

When Kimberly Demuth began work in January for TRC Companies Inc., its significance marked the growing desire for firms involved in infrastructure development to hire environmental specialists. TRC is known as an industry leader for engineering, environmental consulting and construction management ..

According to operations manager Jimmy Gregory, the pipe yard for a current project in McKeesport, PA presented specific challenges that led him to search for a wheeled pipe-handling solution. The answer he found was a Sennebogen 825 M material handler. “We typically use excavators with a vacuum att..

In the last few years, the pipeline industry has been swept into an escalating whirlwind of public protest intended to challenge whether we should continue to rely on pipelines to deliver energy in the United States. Unmoved by the federal government’s assessment that “pipelines are currently still ..

Smart pig helps PSE&G better conduct pipeline inspections.

A survey of U.S. oil and gas risk managers indicates the deployment of cybersecurity measures in the industry isn’t keeping pace with the growth of digitalization in oil and gas operations. In a study from the Ponemon Institute, The State of Cybersecurity in the Oil & Gas Industry: United States, on..

What a difference a decade makes. In 2007, the Canadian and U.S. housing markets were booming, distribution utilities were focused on new construction, hydraulic fracking was hardly in our vocabulary, natural gas was $7 and oil was $55. The possibilities of financial collapse, economic turmoil and h..

For years, cybersecurity has been an afterthought relegated to digital bits and bytes with little interest beyond the data center. With high-profile hacks now permeating the headlines, those times are gone forever, but there is hope of turning the tide despite the alarming trends in play. A differe..

An overview of new pipeline regulations, as featured in the May 2017 issue.

Enbridge, NDT Global Advance R&D of Next-Generation Inspection Technology Enbridge Inc. and NDT Global will partner in a multi-year project to advance innovation in pipeline inspection technology. The agreement focuses on development of a new generation of inspection tool designed to further improv..

CERI: Technology Reduces Oil Sands Costs, Emissions The Canadian Energy Research Institute (CERI) released a study identifying new technologies and processes that will enable the oil sands industry to significantly reduce costs and greenhouse gas emissions. The report identifies six technology con..

A Conversation with Babst Calland Energy Attorney Keith Coyle P&GJ: What are you hearing from the pipeline industry in terms of its expectations on anticipated federal regulatory reforms resulting from President Trump’s executive actions? What are the financial and safety stakes at hand? Coyle: Th..

An overview of pipeline construction projects, as featured in the May 2017 issue.

Pierce Norton’s career had already spanned six different companies before he joined ONEOK in 2004, but he had effectively been working there all along.  By the time he became president of its distribution companies, Tulsa-based ONEOK owned every natural gas system that Norton had operated since join..

Polyethylene (PE) pipe is a staple of the gas distribution industry, but it has always had a major challenge when it comes to repair. Due to its resistance to bonding applications, the only way to repair damaged PE pipe has been to completely remove the damaged portion and splice in new pipe through..

An overview of the latest technology for use on pipeline construction projects, as featured in our May 2017 issue.