Operations
Natural Gas To Challenge Oils Monopoly as Transportation Fuel, IHS Study Says
A new study by business information provider IHS forecasts significant growth and value in the market for natural gas and LNG as a transportation fuel. The study, <em>LNG in Transportation: Challenging Oil’s Grip</em> showed that use of natural gas as a transportation fuel could displace more than 1.5 MMbpd of oil demand by 2030. A combination of drivers — environmental, technological and commercial — will lead to greater adoption of natural gas in transport, the study said. The highest level of adoption will be in high-fuel-consuming applications such as trucks and ships.
Ruptured Santa Barbara Pipeline Badly Corroded, Report Says
LOS ANGELES (AP) — A pipeline rupture that spilled an estimated 101,000 gallons of crude oil near Santa Barbara last month occurred along a badly corroded section that had worn away to a fraction of an inch in thickness, according to federal regulators. The preliminary findings released Wednesday by the federal Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration point to a possible cause of the May 19 spill that blackened popular beaches and created a 9-mile slick in the Pacific Ocean.
Enterprise Announces Acquisition of Eagle Ford Midstream Assets
HOUSTON – Enterprise Products Partners announced today it executed definitive agreements to purchase all member interests in Eagle Ford Shale gas-gathering company EFS Midstream from affiliates of Pioneer Natural Resources Company and Reliance Industries Limited for $2.15 billion.
In The News: Obama Gives Final Approval to Cove Point LNG Terminal
The Obama administration on May 7 granted final approval to a $3.8 billion natural gas export facility in Calvert County, MD – the first gas export site on the East Coast. Environmentalists sued within hours to stop the project.
Embracing Uncertainty: Reducing Risk by Working Together
It’s trite but true: The only thing constant is change. Especially in our industry, it seems. There’s always a new technology or tool to consider or a proposed regulation to ponder. Access to capital restricts and relaxes. Individual rig or well performance can vary widely. Even the location of our best prospects can confound us: North Dakota?
Southcross Holding Open Season To Transport Y-Grade
Southcross Energy Partners announced the launch of a binding open season to solicit commitments for its proposed Y-Grade pipeline. Once complete, the pipeline will allow Southcross to offer transportation services of Y-Grade from a point near Woodsboro, TX to a point near Robstown. The pipeline will have access to the Y-Grade pipeline of Southcross’ holding company that runs from Pettus to Robstown.
Plains All American/Delek Logistics Form JV To Develop Pipeline
Plains All American Pipeline, L.P. and Delek Logistics Partners LP have formed Caddo Pipeline LLC, a 50/50 joint venture to develop the Caddo Pipeline. The 80-mile, 12-inch pipeline will run between Longview, TX and Shreveport, LA.
Midstream: Changing Routes, Emphasis for Energy Renaissance
As global oil prices were still falling and various parts of the U.S. oil/natural gas space were reassessing plans for 2015, the American Petroleum Institute (API) was reorganizing to better service one of the industry’s growth sectors – midstream. API said it was going to provide more attention to “pipelines and processing facilities” that connect oil and gas production with markets. The key is infrastructure, according to the globally recognized Washington, DC-based trade and standards-setting group.
Role of Quality Management System in Project Completion
Quality is critical and the most important factor for completion of a project on time and within the allocated budget. If proper quality checks are not in place, defective materials or work may cause damage to equipment and facilities, and potentially resulting in health and safety hazards. Successful projects are those that meet business requirements and are delivered on schedule. Many factors contribute to a project’s success such as project planning, resource allocation, risk management and governance criteria, but effective quality management is critical for any project success.
Rangeland Lands Anchor Shipper for RIO Pipeline
Rangeland Energy has executed a long-term agreement with a subsidiary of Delek US Holdings, Inc. to be an anchor shipper of crude oil on the Rangeland Integrated Oil Pipeline (RIO Pipeline). The pipeline will connect production from the Delaware Basin to the crude oil market center in Midland, TX. Delek Logistics Partners LP, Delek US’s logistics arm, will own 33% of the RIO Pipeline and supporting terminals.
Making the Best of Evolving Midstream Infrastructure
The changing oil production and consumption landscape in North America has led to new developments in the infrastructure that brings oil to market – the pipelines, gathering systems, storage facilities, rail networks and marine-based transport networks that comprise the industry’s midstream oil infrastructure.
Editor's Notebook: Crude Exports More Important Than Keystone
I was driving to work this morning on Kamikaze Highway, officially known as I-10, and switched on the 9 a.m. news when a story so outlandish grabbed my attention, nearly forcing me into another lane of traffic, in which case I could not have written this column. The story, reported by Fox News, cited an increase in President Obama’s popularity that it attributed to lower gasoline prices. Say what? He being responsible for lower gas prices is like saying the API is non-political. It’s just not so, am I right, Jack Gerard?
What's New: April 2015
What's new from Rotork, Ajax TOCCO, Crest Industrial, Transducers Direct, Tulsa Rig Iron and more.
Billions of Barrels of Oil Discovered Near London But There's A Catch
A small British oil company has found a bonanza of potentially billions of barrels of oil beneath a field near London’s Gatwick Airport. The only problem is how much of the oil is accessible. UK Oil and Gas Investments (UKOG) said April 9 that 3,000 feet of exploratory drilling at Wytch Farm in the Weald Basin, a rural area just north of the airport, discovered a “world-class potential resource.” The area is now referred to as “Britain’s Dallas.” It was the deepest well dug in the region in three decades.
Nimble by Nature: Pipeline Market in Transition
In an environment that is exhibiting disruption and change, being nimble is a necessity. The concept of being flexible rather than rigid in the face of change is one that for many industry participants is counterintuitive. Bruce Lee might have said it best when he suggested, “Empty your mind, be formless. Shapeless, like water. If you put water into a cup, it becomes the cup. You put water into a bottle and it becomes the bottle. You put it in a teapot, it becomes the teapot. Now, water can flow or it can crash. Be water, my friend.”
In the News: Price Declines Lower Tax Revenues in Production States
The Energy Information Administration reported March 12 that the decline in spot oil prices in the last half of 2014 and first month of 2015 has reduced oil and natural gas production tax revenues in some of the largest oil- and natural gas-producing states.
Can Shale Formations Enable U.S. to Become Oil Exporter?
In recent years, the technological advances in recovering hydrocarbons trapped in tight formations, like shale, using unconventional drilling methods (horizontal drilling in conjunction with multi-stage hydraulic fracturing) have made U.S. oil production grow dramatically.
Crude Oil Export Ban: Dated Policy with Real-Life Implications
If you are lucky enough to have grown up in Texas, you are all too familiar with how popular culture, particularly Hollywood, has glamorized the life of a wildcatter or roughneck. The movie Giant depicts James Dean on a windswept Texas countryside, sopping head to toe in newly discovered oil. While maybe a compelling drama, as a Texas Railroad Commissioner, I can tell you this is far from reality.
Falling Oil Prices Exert Influence on Utility Construction
The free-falling oil price caught many observers off guard. Historically, crude oil and natural gas prices tend to stay in alignment as the imbedded energy content is the defining characteristic. Since 2010, when the price of these commodities separated, many observers anticipated upward volatility in the price of gas to realign it with the price of oil. Few analysts anticipated oil falling to realign with low-cost natural gas.
Developing Crack Size Detection Criteria for Unpiggable Gas Pipelines
NYSEARCH/Northeast Gas Association (NGA) and development partner Invodane Engineering have introduced the Explorer series of robotic internal inspection platforms and sensors which can perform integrity assessments on natural gas pipelines now incapable of using conventional inline inspection (ILI) technology. The commercial partner on the project is Pipetel Technologies Inc.
Forget About Keystone XL Canadian Crude Is Coming
While Congress and the White House continue to wrangle over the Keystone XL pipeline extension, the oil industry is taking matters into its own hands. Markets are primed for an influx of Canadian crude oil, but with pipeline transport off the table for the foreseeable future, producers have built alternative modes to meet the demand. The problem is, recent disasters have soured legislators and environmentalists on road and rail for moving oil.
Pipeline Moving Canadian Crude to Gulf Coast Refineries Starts
Crude from the Canadian oil sands deposits gained an additional major outlet in the U.S. when the joint venture of Enbridge, Inc. and Enterprise Products Partners L.P. completed construction of its Cushing-to-Texas pipeline and started deliveries in December to Gulf Coast refineries. The new pipeline’s operations and routes are very similar to TransCanada’s Keystone Pipeline project for bringing oil sands crude to the Gulf Coast.
Tackling Valve Misalignment Problems
Valve misalignments are a real issue in the petrochemical industry where misalignments in tank fields and blending areas can result in financial losses from product quality and environmental safety issues. This article describes an electronic pin board software solution developed by Matrix Technologies, Inc., a certified member of the Control System Integrators Association (CSIA), to mitigate valve misalignments and improve efficiency in the alignment process. It also details some of the underlying technologies used in the software and the gains that have resulted from its use.
EnLink Landman Follows Family Tradition
Recently EnLink Midstream invited me out to West Texas to see my first pipeline spread – the Martin County Extension Pipeline. On the way to the line we stopped by the Deadwood gas plant where I met Chris Coleman, EnLink Midstream’s senior landman. He was amiable, genuine and welcoming, even letting me ride shotgun in his work truck, which I had to jump to get into. As we drove across the flat Texas land, kicking up a flurry of red dirt, he began telling me about his job.
Cathodic Shielding Effects Tested: PipePillo vs. Foam
Perhaps one of the most important safe guards put in place to maintain the long-term integrity of buried pipelines is a cathodic protection system. Cathodic protection (CP) is an anti- corrosion technique used to prevent the corrosion of metals such as steel and iron in electrolytically conducting environments such as seawater and soils containing water.
Wood Mackenzie: Oil Market Concerns Inescapable in 2015
Global consulting company Wood Mackenzie has drawn on the knowledge and expertise of senior analysts in compiling a new report, Horizons: What To Look For In 2015. In discussing the report, Paul McConnell, principal analyst for Global Trends at Wood Mackenzie, pointed out that oil market concerns will be inescapable in 2015. “With no sign that OPEC is reconsidering its decision to leave production targets unchanged, the impetus falls on non-OPEC producers to limit supply growth and bring the market back into balance,” he said.
Latest Price Shock Offers Some Midstream Bright Spots
The price of oil may have fallen to its lowest level in six years, but this “price shock” is different than the 2008-’09 variety, according to analysts at Pace Global. “The current low-price situation is likely to persist for several years unless geopolitical events shift the market psychology from one of surplus to one of shortage,” Jim Diemer, vice president and head Pace Global-Siemens’ Energy Consulting Company, told PG&J.
Newsreel: Northeast Utilities Becomes Eversource Energy
Northeast Utilities, which operates New England’s largest energy delivery company, has become Eversource Energy. All of the company’s subsidiaries, including Connecticut Light and Power Co., NSTAR Electric, NSTAR Gas, Public Service Co. of New Hampshire, Western Massachusetts Electric Co. and Yankee Gas Services Co. have begun operating under the Eversource brand. The company serves more than 3.6 million electric and natural gas customers in Connecticut, Massachusetts and New Hampshire, and employing a workforce of more than 8,000 New Englanders.
Editors Notebook: The Silver Lining Pipelines Work
You already know that Houston is the energy capital of the nation, most likely the world. But did you know that Houston is also the violent bank robbery capital of the nation with no close second?
NTSB Study Seeks Changes to Gas Transmission Integrity Programs
A new National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) study calls for major changes to integrity management (IM) programs of gas transmission pipelines in high-consequence areas (HCAs).
- 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
