Blogs

EIA Reports Storage Decrease of 19 Bcf to Put Working Gas Storage at 3,591 Bcf

By Audrey Casey posted 5 days ago
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Here is the weekly EIA Summary Report issued on Thursday, December 5, which reports the week’s storage report highlights for Friday, November 29. A 19 Bcf decrease has been reported. Working gas in storage was 3,591 Bcf as of Friday, November 29, 2019, according to EIA estimates. This represents a net decrease of 19 Bcf from the previous week. Stocks were 591 Bcf higher than last year at this time and 9 Bcf below the five-year average of 3,600 Bcf. At 3,591 Bcf, total working gas is within the five-year historical range.
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APGA Encourages Members to Participate in ICC Voting

By Stuart Saulters posted 5 days ago
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Recently, APGA has been communicating the ongoing International Code Council (ICC) voting process to members. APGA held a webinar on this topic that was recorded and also posted online for members to view. For those unable to see the webinar, it is important to know that APGA members have the unique opportunity to be an integral part of the voting process, a role that employees of investor-owned utilities do not have. As mentioned, the Online Governmental Consensus Vote (OGCV) process is now open through December 6. If you or someone within your company is a validated voter, please reach out to APGA to obtain a list of voting recommendations and participate. ...
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APGA Submits Responses to House Select Committee on the Climate Crisis

By Stuart Saulters posted 5 days ago
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Prior to Thanksgiving, APGA responded to a request for information from the House Select Committee on the Climate Crisis (HSCCC). Their hope, with our input and feedback from others, is to inform policy recommendations that they will offer to congressional leadership. In addition to industry stakeholders, Representatives were able to submit testimony. Congressman Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.) took this opportunity, and he provided valuable statements, particularly on renewable natural gas (RNG). Below is an example of his positive input to the HSCCC: “Congress is too hasty to pick winners and losers in our energy industry. I believe we need to take an all-of-the-above ...
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New Challenges to California's Natural Gas Bans

By Stuart Saulters posted 5 days ago
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As efforts are made to electrify communities in the country, the California Restaurant Association has filed suit against the city of Berkeley. They are claiming the “natural gas ban is invalid and unenforceable under the federal Energy Policy and Conservation Act and California’s Energy Code and Building Standards Code, and that it is an unlawful use of the police power to amend state building codes.” To see the FAQs and release from the association, visit w ww.calrest.org/government-affairs/cra-files-suits-against-city-berkeley-over-natural-gas-ban . In addition, building developers in Windsor, a town in Sonoma County, Calif., are challenging the natural gas ...
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APGA at the Alabama Gas Pipeline Conference

By Erin Kurilla posted 5 days ago
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On December 4, Erin Kurilla, APGA Vice President of Operations & Safety, spoke to the Alabama operators at the Alabama Gas Pipeline Conference. The Alabama Public Service Commission hosts the event annually and APGA is thankful for the invitation to participate each year. Erin’s presentation focused on pipeline safety legislation efforts currently underway in Washington, D.C. She walked through the various proposals introduced by the Senate and House of Representative committees with jurisdiction over pipeline safety. She also highlighted some of APGA’s programs including the new Mutual Aid Program and the APGA System Operational Achievement Recognition (SOAR) ...
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2018 Benchmarking Data Now Available

By John Erickson posted 5 days ago
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With the release by the Energy Information Administration (EIA) of its 2018 Form 176 data, the APGA Benchmarking tool has been updated to include benchmarks for 2018. The tool has also been improved to include fourteen new benchmarks related to natural gas vehicles (NGV). The benchmarking program allows APGA members to compare themselves against peers in over 100 different metrics, including operational, financial, customer and now, NGVs. Members can compare themselves with the average of over 1,500 distribution systems in the database or to a self-selected peer group of systems. For example, a member could choose to compare its results with just other systems ...
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Revised Public Awareness Recommended Practice Nearing Completion

By John Erickson posted 5 days ago
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The American Petroleum Institute (API) is in the process of updating its Recommended Practice (RP) 1162 on Public Awareness Programs for Pipeline Operators. The original RP 1162 was issued in 2003, and in 2005 the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) incorporated RP 1162 by reference in its pipeline safety regulations, making RP 1162 mandatory for public awareness programs. Operators were required to develop and implement public awareness programs meeting the requirements of RP 1162 no later than 2006. APGA developed a model public awareness plan for public gas systems and conducted a series of workshops across the country to familiarize ...
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APGA Statement on Natural Gas in California

By Dave Schryver posted 14 days ago
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Recent media coverage about the direct use of natural gas in homes and businesses have centered on a false premise – that the only way to reduce greenhouse gas emissions is to mandate electrification and ban natural gas. The truth is, natural gas has helped to reduce emissions across the country. Gas utilities have added 30 million more residential customers with virtually no increases in emissions over a nearly 50-year span. What’s more, increased natural gas efficiency and the growth of renewable energy have led to energy-related carbon dioxide emissions hitting 25-year lows. When used directly in homes and businesses, natural gas is three times more efficient ...
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EIA Reports Storage Decrease of 94 Bcf to Put Working Gas Storage at 3,638 Bcf

By Audrey Casey posted 19 days ago
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Here is the weekly EIA Summary Report issued on Thursday, November 21, which reports the week’s storage report highlights for Friday, November 15. A 94 Bcf decrease has been reported. Working gas in storage was 3,638 Bcf as of Friday, November 15, 2019, according to EIA estimates. This represents a net decrease of 94 Bcf from the previous week. Stocks were 506 Bcf higher than last year at this time and 60 Bcf below the five-year average of 3,698 Bcf. At 3,638 Bcf, total working gas is within the five-year historical range.
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APGA Participates in National Academy of Sciences Committee Meeting

By Stuart Saulters posted 19 days ago
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On November 19 and 20, APGA staff attended a meeting conducted by the National Academy of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NAS). The objective of this event was to kickoff a committee to peer review the analytical methods employed by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) in setting “standards regulations” for appliances. DOE sets these standards following procedures designated in the 1975 Energy Policy and Conservation Act (EPCA), which requires various analyses to be completed to anticipate costs and benefits. There can be significant impacts on public natural gas utilities, including fuel switching, depending on how DOE completes the appliance rulemakings. ...
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House Committees Mark Up, Pass Pipeline Safety Bills

By Doug MacGillivray posted 19 days ago
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Recently, the House Energy and Commerce and Transportation and Infrastructure Committees marked up and passed the SAFER Pipelines Act of 2019. This legislation is the House version of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) reauthorization bill. This follows the Senate Commerce Committee’s passage of their version at the end of July. The underlying text makes several changes to existing law for distribution operators. It would require LDCs and other distributors to: capture minor methane releases during routine operations, submit distribution pipeline data to the National Pipeline Mapping System; remove the statutory cost-benefit ...
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Senate Energy Committee Votes to Confirm Nominees for Secretary of Energy and Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

By Dave Schryver posted 19 days ago
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On November 19, the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee approved on a 14-6 vote the President’s nomination of Dan Brouillette to serve as Secretary of Energy. Mr. Brouillette will replace Secretary Perry who has announced his intention to leave the Department of Energy (DOE). Prior to joining DOE, Mr. Brouillette led the policy shops at USAA and Ford Motor Co. He also served on the Louisiana State Mineral and Energy Board and worked as chief of staff for former Energy and Commerce Chairman Billy Tauzin (R-La.). During his time at DOE, Mr. Brouillette has had a focus on promoting U.S. LNG exports. The committee also approved on a 12-8 vote the President’s ...
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PHMSA’s Gas & Liquid Pipeline Advisory Committees Meet

By Erin Kurilla posted 19 days ago
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On November 14, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration’s (PHMSA) Gas and Liquid Pipeline Advisory Committees (GPAC and LPAC) met in Washington, D.C. The committees are federally mandated and their role is to provide multi-stakeholder input on PHMSA initiatives, including rulemakings. The committees have 15 members each comprised of five members of the public, five regulators and five industry representatives. APGA membership is represented on the committee by Rich Worsinger from City of Wilson, N.C. During this meeting, there was no discussion of new rules, instead PHMSA took the opportunity to brief members on a variety of programs underway. ...
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APGA Meets with FERC Commissioners

By Dave Schryver posted 26 days ago
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On November 13, members of the APGA Board of Directors and the Regulatory Subcommittee met with members of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) in Washington,D.C. The APGA representatives that participated in the meeting included: John Leary, APGA First Vice Chair and Gas Superintendent for the Borough of Chambersburg; John Gregg, APGA’s General Counsel; and Dave Schryver, APGA’s Executive Vice President and incoming President and CEO. The issues that were raised in the meeting included the liquidity of natural gas price indices, infrastructure, and pipeline rates. APGA leadership meets with the FERC Commissioners twice a year as a means to communicate ...
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APGA Members Meet with PHMSA Leadership

By Erin Kurilla posted 26 days ago
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On November 13, APGA members met with Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) leadership to discuss important pipeline safety topics. PHMSA leadership included: Alan Mayberry, Associate Administrator of Pipeline Safety; Massoud Tahamtani, Deputy Associate Administrator of Policy and Programs; and, Linda Daugherty, Deputy Associate Administrator of Field Operations. APGA was represented by: Gordon King, Okaloosa Gas District; Stephen Mayfield, City of Tallahassee; Matt Stennett, Middle Tennessee Natural Gas; and, Carl Smith, Greenville Utility Commission. Discussion topics included gas system supply and reliability, the definitions of ...
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EIA Reports Storage Increase of 3 Bcf to Put Working Gas Storage at 3,732 Bcf

By Audrey Casey posted 26 days ago
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Here is the weekly EIA Summary Report issued on Thursday, November 14, which reports the week’s storage report highlights for Friday, November 8. A 3 Bcf increase has been reported. Working gas in storage was 3,732 Bcf as of Friday, November 8, 2019, according to EIA estimates. This represents a net increase of 3 Bcf from the previous week. Stocks were 491 Bcf higher than last year at this time and 2 Bcf above the five-year average of 3,730 Bcf. At 3,732 Bcf, total working gas is within the five-year historical range.
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APGA and SIF Speak at Kansas Pipeline Safety Seminar

By John Erickson posted 11-07-2019
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On November 6 and 7, John Erickson spoke on behalf of APGA and the APGA Security and Integrity Foundation (SIF) at the Kansas Public Service Commission’s Pipeline Safety Seminar in Manhattan, Kansas. In the SIF session, John focused on lessons learned after eight years of the SIF’s Simple Handy Risk-based Integrity Management Plan (SHRIMP) program. Over 1,600 distribution operators have used the SHRIMP program to develop their Distribution Integrity Management Plans (DIMP). John’s talk was based on feedback received from SHRIMP users and state regulators who have audited systems using SHRIMP. One overriding lesson learned is that many operators don’t fully understand ...
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APGA to Begin “Did You Know Campaign”

By Dave Schryver posted 11-07-2019
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On November 15, APGA will begin a “Did You Know” campaign in an email that will be sent out to all members. The campaign is intended to provide APGA members with information on a monthly basis that they can share with audiences such as customers, policymakers, media, employees, etc. On the 15th of each month, APGA will send out to its members a piece that focuses on specific issues ranging from the benefits of direct use to cooking with gas and the impacts of mandated electrification. The monthly series is meant to provide resources and education to help our members communicate the benefits of natural gas on a variety of topics. You are welcome to use the facts ...
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APGA Sends Letter to FERC on Natural Gas Hub Liquidity

By Dave Schryver posted 11-07-2019
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On November 6, APGA sent a letter to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) expressing concern about the lack of liquidity in many U.S. natural gas markets and the impact that is having on index prices established by price reporting agencies. As communicated in the letter, a recent report indicated that “natural gas fixed-price volume potentially reported to price-index publishers experienced the largest year-on-year drop since 2009 [for 2018 calendar year].” APGA has been involved in this issue for several years. Donnie Sharp of Huntsville Utilities served as APGA’s representative on a 2017 FERC Technical Conference on the issue of hub liquidity. ...
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APGA Speaks at Tennessee Gas Association Management Conference

By Dave Schryver posted 11-07-2019
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On November 7, Dave Schryver, APGA’s Executive Vice President and incoming President & CEO, spoke at the Tennessee Gas Association’s Fall Management Conference. The conference was well attended by a large number of representatives from Tennessee’s public natural gas systems as well as representatives from investor-owned utilities and pipelines. In his presentation, Dave discussed the many benefits that the direct use of natural gas provides, including affordability, and reliability. He also discussed the efforts to ban natural gas in new construction in several cities in California, including Berkeley and San Jose, and how that effort may spread to other ...
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