Director

In the article “Bison Pipeline is Back and Eyeing Growth” (see NGI, Oct. 17), NGI misquoted Todd Johnson, TransCanada’s marketing director for U.S. Pipelines West, in his remarks regarding the company’s restart of the Bison natural gas pipeline following a rupture in July. For the record, TransCanada provided the following statement: “TransCanada worked closely with the Pipeline Hazardous Materials and Safety Administration (PHMSA) in the aftermath of the incident to identify what actions would need to be taken in order to safely return the pipeline to service at its approved maximum allowable operating pressure. Among other things, TransCanada conducted an inline inspection of the entire length of the pipe and provided the data and analysis to PHMSA. PHMSA worked diligently with the TransCanada team and the information provided and concluded that as of noon Saturday, October 8, Bison could safely lift its force majeure condition and return to full service at its original maximum allowable operating pressure.” NGI regrets the error.

In the article “Bison Pipeline is Back and Eyeing Growth” (see Daily GPI, Oct. 17), NGI misquoted Todd Johnson, TransCanada’s marketing director for U.S. Pipelines West, in his remarks regarding the company’s restart of the Bison natural gas pipeline following a rupture in July. For the record, TransCanada provided the following statement: “TransCanada worked closely with the Pipeline Hazardous Materials and Safety Administration (PHMSA) in the aftermath of the incident to identify what actions would need to be taken in order to safely return the pipeline to service at its approved maximum allowable operating pressure. Among other things, TransCanada conducted an inline inspection of the entire length of the pipe and provided the data and analysis to PHMSA. PHMSA worked diligently with the TransCanada team and the information provided and concluded that as of noon Saturday, October 8, Bison could safely lift its force majeure condition and return to full service at its original maximum allowable operating pressure.” NGI regrets the error.

First-year Wyoming Gov. Matt Mead is still ironing out an energy policy for his resources-rich state, the governor’s chief policy director, Shawn Reese, told NGI Monday. Mead recently offered some “introductory remarks” on the still-developing policy statement when he spoke last week at the state Natural Gas Fair.

The Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC) plans to hold a special meeting on Oct. 21 to act on draft natural gas drilling regulations, according to Executive Director Carol R. Collier. The proposed regulations would protect water resources of the Delaware River Basin when gas projects are developed and in operation. The DRBC received close to 69,000 comments on the draft rules, which originally were published in December (see Shale Daily, Dec. 10, 2010). The meeting, open to the public, is to be held from 1-3 p.m. in the Patriots Theater at the War Memorial, 1 Memorial Drive, Trenton, NJ. A public hearing at the meeting is not planned.

The New York Assembly’s Environmental Conservation Committee this week reported out of committee legislation to suspend until June 1, 2012 the issuance of new permits to drill that use hydraulic fracturing (hydrofracking) to extract natural gas or oil.

A Pennsylvania state lawmaker wants to form a cooperative so that local municipalities can share ideas and resources as they manage development of the Marcellus Shale.

The Gasland documentary film continues to dog the footsteps of the natural gas industry (see Shale Daily, Feb. 16). The film’s director Josh Fox and actor-turned-activist Mark Ruffalo flanked Reps. Maurice Hinchey (D-NY), Rep Jared Polis (D-CO) and Rep. Rush Holt (D-NJ) Thursday as they announced plans to reintroduce legislation to regulate the practice of hydraulic fracturing (hydrofracking) at the federal level.

Interior Secretary Ken Salazar and Michael R. Bromwich, director of Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEM), announced Monday that the department has issued guidance to offshore oil and natural gas operators clarifying industry requirements with respect to corporate compliance statements and blowout containment resources.

Rick Smead, a director in Navigant Consulting Inc.’s Energy Practice, co-authored the firm’s 2008 North American Natural Gas Supply Assessment, which was considered a breakthrough in recognizing the potential of unconventional natural gas supplies. However, many of the two-year-old supply assumptions already need to be updated because of remarkable advancements in technology, he said Wednesday.