Operations
Inspecting Pipelines Using Dual-Conventional Transducers
Today, there are millions of miles of pipeline all over the world, and many of these systems are old. Pipelines transport energy (crude oil, refined petroleum, natural gas and biofuels to name a few) and other fluids to various markets across vast distances. The integrity of the pipelines is of paramount concern to ensure the safety of people and the environment.
Measuring Crack Defects with Sub-Millimeter Accuracy
Ultrasonic crack technology, using piezoelectric transducers, is a proven and widely used solution for crack and crack-like defect detection in liquids pipelines. Over the past 20 years, only minor developments and improvements in this area were offered to pipeline operators.
Energy Department Offering Grants for Pipeline Projects
The Department of Energy will award $24 million in grants for the development of tools, methods and technologies to cost-effectively enhance the safety and efficiency of the nation’s natural gas production, gathering, storage, and transmission infrastructure. Grants will be as much as $3 million but no lower than $1 million.
First Pipeline Safety Bill Introduced
Two Massachusetts senators, one of them a Democratic presidential candidate, have introduced the first pipeline safety bill as Congress works to put together legislation reauthorizing the Pipeline Safety Act, which expires on Sept. 30.
NTSB Reveals Findings of 3-Year Gas Explosion Investigation
A gas company’s faulty equipment is the most likely cause of an explosion at a suburban Maryland apartment complex that killed seven people in 2016, according to federal report.
Iranian Gas Platform Fire Contained, No Fatalities Reported
A fire that broke out on a platform of the South Pars gas field in the Gulf on Wednesday has been contained and no fatalities were reported, Iran's oil ministry news agency SHANA said.
Canadian Oil Pipeline Congestion Sets up Lucrative Storage Play
As Canadian oil production has outpaced pipeline takeaway capacity, demand for storage in the oil sands province of Alberta has increased.
5 Workers Hurt in Houston-Area Natural Gas Line Explosion
Five workers have been injured when a natural gas line exploded in a residential neighborhood southeast of Houston. The blast occurred as a CenterPoint Energy contractor was working along a line Thursday.
NW Natural Completes North Mist Expansion Project
NW Natural has completed its North Mist Expansion Project and begun providing no-notice storage to Portland General Electric’s Port Westward plants to balance renewable power on the grid.
Blast Injures 14 on Saipem-Operated Ship in Caspian Sea
An explosion occurred Wednesday evening on the vessel “Israfil Huseynov” operated by Saipem for pipelaying in the Caspian Sea in the framework of the Shah Deniz II project.
Report: Blaze Engulfs 2 Iranian Pipelines, 5 Workers Injured
Iran's official IRNA news agency says firefighters have brought under control a blaze that engulfed two oil and gas pipelines in southwestern, oil-rich Khuzestan province.
Alliance
Alliance Sensors Group introduced the SS-7 series linear variable inductive transducer (LVIT), designed for subsea environments. The transducer is embedded into a hydraulic cylinder and uses the gun-drilled piston rod as a target, sensing its position without the need for a magnet. The SS-7 Series c..
HiP
High Pressure Equipment Company (HiP), a subsidiary of Graco, added 3/8- and 9/16-inch O.D. valves and fittings to its ultra-high pressure family, designed to ensure safe and easy plumbing for pressures up to 100,000 psi. The new sizes of valves are available in four body styles – two-way straight, ..
Abriox
Software and hardware systems can be costly to install on a broad scale, but Osprey, designed and built by Abriox, is helping utilities supplement surveillance at multiple locations by monitoring, gathering and processing real-time data, economically. Osprey allows users to see daily compilations of..
Technical Toolboxes
Technical Toolboxes released Version 19.0 of its The Pipeline Toolbox. The device features a range of improved calculations and applications, along with an embedded new license manager that strengthens security and enables better visibility. With its more than 230 pipeline-specific oil and gas appli..
Mehrer
Mehrer Compression GmbH introduced a high-pressure compressor, the TRx 400. The air-cooled piston compressor offers a solution for applications that require high final pressures of up to 200 bar, combined with high suction pressures of up to 35 bar. The TRx 400 is suited for the compression of H2, N..
Congress Begins to Consider Changes to Pipeline Safety Law
Stephen Barlas, Contributing Editor, Washington, D.C. Congress had its first hearings in April in both the House and Senate on reauthorization of the Pipeline Safety Act, which loses its current authority Sept. 30, 2019. There will perhaps be some new safety requirements passed given that both De..
Mass. Budgets Statewide Review of Natural Gas Systems
Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker signed a spending bill that funds a statewide examination of Massachusetts’ natural gas distribution system, a review that was ordered after last September’s gas explosions near Boston that killed one person, injured 25 others and damaged or destroyed dozens of build..
TANAP’s Seismic Fault Crossing Posed Challenges For Welding
The Trans Anatolia Natural Gas Pipeline transports Azeri gas from the Shah Deniz field through Turkey and Europe. Construction of the technically challenging project was complicated by the North Anatolian Fault.
Letter from PRCI President Cliff Johnson: Investing in Research to Improve Pipeline Safety
Pipeline Research Council International (PRCI) exists as a way for its members, who are pipeline operators, service providers and other industry stakeholders, to collectively and collaboratively, conduct research, develop, and evaluate new and emerging technologies that have the potential to improve..
Plains All American fined $3.3M for California Oil Spill
Plains All American Pipeline was fined nearly $3.35 million for a 2015 California coastal oil spill caused by the rupture of a corroded pipeline.
Mariner East 1 Pipeline Operational Again
Energy Transfer LP announced that effective Monday, April 23 Mariner East 1 pipeline has resumed operations. The 350-mile, 8-inch NGL pipeline transports NGLs across Southern Pennsylvania to Energy Transfer’s Marcus Hook Industrial Complex in Delaware County, PA.
Apache Corp Halting Permian Gas Production Due to Lack of Pipelines
Oil and gas producer Apache Corp said on Tuesday it temporarily halted production at its Alpine High assets in the Permian basin late March, curtailing output of about 250 million cubic feet of natural gas per day because of extremely low prices.
New Concho-Frontier JV to Construct Midland Basin Gathering System
Concho Resources and Frontier Midstream Solutions IV have agreed to form a 50-50 joint venture, Beta Crude Connector, LLC (BCC), to build and provide crude oil gathering, transportation and storage services in the Northern Midland Basin.
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.
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.
Project Delays Sink Oil Sands Output in 2019
Canadian Oil Sands production in 2019 will be almost 230,000 b/d lower than last year, according to ESAI Energy’s recently published North America Watch.
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.
At Least 5 Killed in Iran Gas Pipeline Explosion
A gas pipeline explosion in southwestern Iran killed at least five people and injured six, the Tasnim news agency reported.
Andax
Andax Andax introduced the Xtreme Shell Pipe Flange Containment System, a reusable, hard containment shell designed to fully enclose a pipe flange, manifold or any other leak point. The drain hose diverts the leak to a closed container, thereby reducing the potential dange..
- Kinder Morgan Proposes 290-Mile Gas Pipeline Expansion Spanning Three States
- Enbridge Plans 86-Mile Pipeline Expansion, Bringing 850 Workers to Northern B.C.
- Intensity, Rainbow Energy to Build 344-Mile Gas Pipeline Across North Dakota
- Tallgrass to Build New Permian-to-Rockies Pipeline, Targets 2028 Startup with 2.4 Bcf Capacity
- U.S. Moves to Block Enterprise Products’ Exports to China Over Security Risk
- U.S. Pipeline Expansion to Add 99 Bcf/d, Mostly for LNG Export, Report Finds
- A Systematic Approach To Ensuring Pipeline Integrity
- US Poised to Become Net Exporter of Crude Oil in 2023
- EIG’s MidOcean Energy Acquires 20% Stake in Peru LNG, Including 254-Mile Pipeline
- Enbridge Sells $511 Million Stake in Westcoast Pipeline to Indigenous Alliance
