© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: A warning signal for a pure gasoline pipeline is seen as pure gasoline flares at an oil pump website exterior of Williston, North Dakota March 11, 2013. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton/File Photo
(Reuters) – The U.S. wants extra pipeline capability to take care of dependable gasoline provide throughout excessive chilly climate, a commerce group representing pipeline corporations stated on Monday in assist of regulators who final week urged sought new guidelines to forestall a repetition of final winter’s energy outages.
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and the North American Electric Reliability Corp (NERC) urged lawmakers to fill a regulatory blind spot to take care of dependable provide of pure gasoline that was highlighted by an inquiry into energy outages throughout Winter Storm Elliott in December 2022.
Elliott delivered sub-freezing temperatures and excessive climate warnings to nearly two-thirds of the U.S., leading to unexpected power technology provide losses.
Speaking for operators of round 200,000 miles (322,000 km) of pipelines, the Interstate Natural Gas Association of America (INGAA) stated the regulators’ report confirmed that its members “used all possible flexibility and storage withdrawals to deliver as much natural gas through the system as possible.”
Declining manufacturing lowered flows of gasoline into pipelines throughout Elliott, whereas demand for the gasoline for heating and energy technology elevated, dramatically decreasing line pressures.
Falling stress ranges put the pipeline system liable to collapse, the INGAA stated, forcing operators to implement scheduling restrictions and cut back beforehand confirmed nominations for transporting the gasoline.
The report had discovered that in New York City, Consolidated Edison (NYSE:) declared an emergency as a result of it confronted a system collapse that will have taken “many months” to revive service in the midst of the winter.
“The United States needs more natural gas pipeline capacity to maintain a resilient system that affords homes and the power grid access to multiple sources of this critical fuel,” the INGAA stated.
In its 2023-24 winter outlook, the NERC stated final week that extended, wide-area chilly snaps threaten the supply of gasoline provides for pure gas-fired technology, warning there may be not sufficient pure gasoline pipeline and infrastructure for the U.S. Midwest, Mid-Atlantic, and Northeast areas.
