Accidents

Accidents | Energy Services | Energy Transfer Partners | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Pipelines | Washington County

ET Revolution Cryogenic Processing Plant Explodes in PA on Xmas
January 3, 2023January 3, 2023

Energy Transfer’s Revolution Pipeline cryogenic plant (click for larger version)

Residents living in the vicinity of Energy Transfer’s Revolution Pipeline cryogenic plant in Bulger (Washington County), PA, got a nasty “present” on Christmas morning. Around 7:30 am, residents report hearing an explosion, followed by a fire, at the plant used to separate NGLs (natural gas liquids, including ethane, propane, and butane) from the raw gas stream that flows through the Revolution gathering pipeline. The explosion and ensuing fire drove at least one family out of their house for hours while firefighters stood by, waiting for the gas feeding the blaze to burn itself out.
Read More “ET Revolution Cryogenic Processing Plant Explodes in PA on Xmas”
Accidents | Energy Companies | Industrywide Issues | Lycoming County | Pennsylvania | Pennsylvania General Energy | Regulation

PA DEP Dings PGE 3rd Time for Causing Muddy Water in Loyalsock Creek
December 19, 2022December 19, 2022

Mud plume in Loyalsock Creek (click for larger version)

The Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) has, for a THIRD time, served a notice of violation (NOV) of the PA Clean Streams Law to Pennsylvania General Energy (PGE) for causing sediment pollution in the Loyalsock Creek north of Montoursville (Lycoming County). PGE is constructing a natural gas pipeline, a freshwater pipeline, and withdrawals of fresh water for Marcellus Shale-related activities at the site. A November 28 inspection by the DEP noted new violations.
Read More “PA DEP Dings PGE 3rd Time for Causing Muddy Water in Loyalsock Creek”
Accidents | Cambria County | Energy Services | Equitrans/EQT Midstream | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Storage

PA Finds More Leaky Wells in Cambria Storage Field, Stops Injections
December 12, 2022December 12, 2022

Late last week, the Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) slapped Equitrans with three orders related to the Rager Mountain Gas Storage Reservoir in Cambria County, PA. The George L Reade 1 storage well located in the Rager Storage Reservoir vented natural gas uncontrolled into the atmosphere from Sunday, November 6, 2022, until the evening of Saturday, November 19, 2022, when it was plugged. The DEP has been onsite during the entire event (and since). An investigation by the DEP has found all but one of the 12 storage wells at the Rager field are leaking methane to one degree or another. The DEP has closed down all injections into the field, although withdrawals from the field (in order to prevent customers from going without) have continued.
Read More “PA Finds More Leaky Wells in Cambria Storage Field, Stops Injections”
Accidents | Cambria County | Energy Services | Equitrans/EQT Midstream | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Storage

Feds Investigate Equitrans Storage Well Leak in Cambria County, PA
December 5, 2022December 5, 2022

Three weeks ago, one of the ten natural gas storage wells at the Equitrans Rager Mountain Gas Storage Area in Jackson Township, Cambria County (in Pennsylvania) began to leak and ended up leaking roughly 100 million cubic feet per day (MMcf/d) of gas into the atmosphere (see Equitrans Gas Storage Well in Cambria County, PA is Leaking). It took two weeks (14 days) for the leak to get fixed, after it had leaked roughly 1.4 billion cubic feet into the air (see Storage Well Leak Fix in Cambria County Failed, Leaked 1.4 Bcf). On Friday, we told you the PA Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) is conducting a top to bottom review of how it regulates storage facilities following that incident (see PA DEP Doing “Top to Bottom” Review of Gas Storage After Big Leak). The federal Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) is joining the investigation.
Read More “Feds Investigate Equitrans Storage Well Leak in Cambria County, PA”
Accidents | CNG/LNG | Exporting | Industrywide Issues

Freeport LNG Changes Restart Date from Mid- to End-December
December 5, 2022December 5, 2022

Three weeks ago, Freeport LNG, which has been out of commission since early June, changed the target date it would restart from November to mid-December (see Freeport LNG Announces Fix-it Work 90% Done, Restart in Mid-Dec). That wasn’t the first time the company moved the restart date, and (it seems), not the last. On Friday, Freeport announced another delay. The company now says feed gas will not flow to the facility until the end of December.
Read More “Freeport LNG Changes Restart Date from Mid- to End-December”
Accidents | Cambria County | Energy Services | Equitrans/EQT Midstream | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation | Statewide PA | Storage

PA DEP Doing “Top to Bottom” Review of Gas Storage After Big Leak
December 2, 2022December 2, 2022

Three weeks ago, one of the ten natural gas storage wells at the Equitrans Rager Mountain Gas Storage Area in Jackson Township, Cambria County (in Pennsylvania) began to leak and ended up leaking roughly 100 million cubic feet per day (MMcf/d) of gas into the atmosphere (see Equitrans Gas Storage Well in Cambria County, PA is Leaking). It took two weeks (14 days) for the leak to get fixed, after it had leaked roughly 1.4 billion cubic feet into the air (see Storage Well Leak Fix in Cambria County Failed, Leaked 1.4 Bcf). The PA Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) is currently conducting a “top to bottom” review of how it regulates storage facilities following that incident.
Read More “PA DEP Doing “Top to Bottom” Review of Gas Storage After Big Leak”
Accidents | Beaver County | Energy Companies | Ethane | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Processing Plants | Shell

Shell Cracker Plant has Flaring Episode – Skyline Turns Orange
December 1, 2022December 1, 2022

Credit: Bob Schmetzer/Eyes on Shell

The Shell ethane cracker plant near Pittsburgh (now called Shell Polymers Monaca) had an orange glow over it Monday night. The neighbors were not impressed. According to Shell, there was an issue with the steam generator that caused the operators to initiate ground flaring–the burning of hydrocarbons. The flares relieve pressure by burning off hydrocarbons flowing through a malfunctioning piece of equipment. Shell insisted the flare itself is not a malfunction but instead “a safety device.” Kind of distinction without a difference, no?
Read More “Shell Cracker Plant has Flaring Episode – Skyline Turns Orange”
Accidents | Cambria County | Energy Services | Equitrans/EQT Midstream | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Storage

Storage Well Leak Fix in Cambria County Failed, Leaked 1.4 Bcf
November 21, 2022November 21, 2022

On Friday, MDN reported that one of the ten natural gas storage wells at the Equitrans Rager Mountain Gas Storage Area in Jackson Township, Cambria County (in Pennsylvania) that was leaking roughly 100 MMcf/d of gas had finally been plugged (see “Massive” Gas Storage Well Leak in Cambria County Finally Plugged). Not so fast. Friday morning, nearby residents once again heard the telltale roaring sound and smell of gas. The well began to leak again. It took a specialist company, Cudd Well Control, until Sunday (another two days) to finally get the leak stopped and concrete poured into the hole to permanently plug the leak.
Read More “Storage Well Leak Fix in Cambria County Failed, Leaked 1.4 Bcf”
Accidents | CNX Resources | Energy Companies | Greene County (PA) | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Regulation

CNX Clipped $200K by PA DEP for Wastewater Spills in Greene County
November 18, 2022November 18, 2022

The Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP) announced that CNX Resources has paid two civil penalty assessments totaling $200,000 for violations at two different well sites in Richhill Township, Greene County. According to the civil penalty assessment paperwork, CNX spilled “production fluids” (wastewater, drilling mud, etc.) and didn’t clean it up quickly enough. Tallying all of the spills, CNX inadvertently spilled 2,170 gallons of production fluid at two sites, and ended up removing roughly 3,400 tons of “contaminated” soil.
Read More “CNX Clipped $200K by PA DEP for Wastewater Spills in Greene County”
Accidents | Cambria County | Energy Services | Equitrans/EQT Midstream | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Storage

“Massive” Gas Storage Well Leak in Cambria County Finally Plugged
November 18, 2022November 18, 2022

Equitrans Midstream (formerly EQT Midstream) owns the Rager Mountain Gas Storage Area in Jackson Township, Cambria County, in Pennsylvania. Beginning Nov. 6th, one of the wells at the Rager Mountain area (a depleted conventional well drilled in 1965) began leaking methane around the well casing (see Equitrans Gas Storage Well in Cambria County, PA is Leaking). The good news is that the leak, as of yesterday, is plugged. But not before the well leaked an estimated 1 billion cubic feet (Bcf) of methane into the atmosphere–roughly 10% of the gas stored at the Rager Mountain Gas Storage Area.
Read More ““Massive” Gas Storage Well Leak in Cambria County Finally Plugged”
Accidents | CNG/LNG | Exporting | Industrywide Issues | Regulation

PHMSA Releases Redacted Version of Freeport LNG Explosion Report
November 17, 2022November 17, 2022

Sample of redacted Freeport incident report

On Tuesday, Freeport LNG released a summary of the “root cause failure analysis report” they got back from an independent, third-party investigation into the cause of a pipeline explosion at the plant (see Freeport LNG Releases Reasons for Pipeline Explosion on June 8). Freeport’s brief summary of bullet points was the company’s spin on the report. A few hours later, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), the regulator in charge of investigating the accident, released a heavily redacted (but full) copy of the consultant’s report, which we have embedded below. It appears to us that the PHMSA was not happy with Freeport’s spin version and wants the public to know the fuller story.
Read More “PHMSA Releases Redacted Version of Freeport LNG Explosion Report”
Accidents | Cambria County | Energy Services | Equitrans/EQT Midstream | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Storage

Equitrans Gas Storage Well in Cambria County, PA is Leaking
November 16, 2022November 18, 2022

Equitrans Midstream (formerly EQT Midstream) owns the Rager Mountain Gas Storage Area in Jackson Township, Cambria County, in Pennsylvania. Since Nov. 6th, one of the wells at the Rager Mountain area (a depleted conventional well drilled in 1965) has been leaking methane. Residents living in the area were first alerted to the leak by a very loud hissing or roaring sound, and the odor of natural gas. The smell (hydrogen sulfide) persists. Equitrans is trying to fix the leak and is making progress, but gas continues to escape between two of the well’s casings.
Read More “Equitrans Gas Storage Well in Cambria County, PA is Leaking”
Accidents | CNG/LNG | Exporting | Industrywide Issues

Freeport LNG Releases Reasons for Pipeline Explosion on June 8
November 16, 2022November 16, 2022

click for larger version

Yesterday we brought you the news that it appears the Freeport LNG export facility, down since early June due to a pipeline explosion, won’t be back online until early next year (see Analysts Now Predict Freeport LNG Not Back Online Until January). In that post we mused about why it’s taking so long to fix a pipe and return the facility to exporting 2.1 Bcf/d of natural gas. Perhaps we now have a better understanding. Yesterday, Freeport issued a press release summarizing the results of a third-party, five-month investigation into what happened and why. The press release is a summary of the “root cause failure analysis report” they got back.
Read More “Freeport LNG Releases Reasons for Pipeline Explosion on June 8”
Accidents | CNG/LNG | Exporting | Industrywide Issues

Analysts Now Predict Freeport LNG Not Back Online Until January
November 15, 2022November 15, 2022

The Freeport LNG export facility, located in Quintana Island, Texas (near Houston), experienced an explosion and fire in early June (see Explosion Rocks Freeport LNG Export Plant – Offline for 3 Weeks). The plant has been offline since that time. Plant management previously said it expected to resume operations sometime this month, in November. Indeed, with three LNG cargo carriers parked just off the Freeport coast and a fourth on the way, it certainly appeared the facility was getting ready to restart. But not anymore. While nobody from Freeport is talking on the record (yet), Bloomberg is reporting that Freeport has spoken with customers to let them know the facility probably won’t be ready to restart until January.
Read More “Analysts Now Predict Freeport LNG Not Back Online Until January”
Accidents | Energy Services | Equitrans/EQT Midstream | Industrywide Issues | Pennsylvania | Pipelines | Washington County

Tiny Fire Quickly Extinguished at Equitrans Pipe Metering Stn SWPA
November 7, 2022November 7, 2022

On Friday, November 4, at approximately 6:45 am, the Bentleyville Fire Department responded to a 911 call by a resident regarding a small fire near Equitrans Midstream’s H-108 natural gas transmission line, located in Bentleyville Borough, Washington County, PA. Apparently, a valve caught fire. The fire was small and contained and was extinguished by 7:30 am. No injuries, no big explosions–overall a pretty minor incident. However, just to be safe, the nearby Bentworth School District canceled classes for the day, which of course, made the headlines in nearby Pittsburgh and gave anti-fossil fuel chatterers something to chatter about.
Read More “Tiny Fire Quickly Extinguished at Equitrans Pipe Metering Stn SWPA”
Accidents | CNG/LNG | Exporting | Industrywide Issues | Pipelines

Report Says Freeport LNG Managers Knew of Problem Before Explosion
November 2, 2022November 2, 2022

The Freeport LNG export facility experienced an explosion and fire in early June (see Explosion Rocks Freeport LNG Export Plant – Offline for 3 Weeks). The plant has been offline since that time and is expected to resume operations sometime this month. But as we told you yesterday, Freeport won’t restart this month, according to FERC, unless and until it gives both FERC and PHMSA more information asap (see Regulators Need More Info Before Freeport LNG Can Restart). Just coming to light now are details that seem to indicate managers at the plant ignored warning signs days before a pipeline exploded.
Read More “Report Says Freeport LNG Managers Knew of Problem Before Explosion”