Inspection

Cascade Natural Gas Corp. has agreed to pay a $75,000 penalty and improve its gas pipeline inspection and maintenance programs as part of a proposed settlement announced by Washington state regulators.

Cascade Natural Gas Corp. has agreed to pay a $75,000 penalty and improve its gas pipeline inspection and maintenance programs as part of a proposed settlement announced by Washington state regulators.

Westcoast postponed an in-line inspection tool run between Stations 4B and 5, previously set for Thursday (see Daily GPI, July 30) due to failure of a tool component. The pipeline has not yet scheduled a new date for the project but said it will not be before Aug. 6 at the earliest. Westcoast also said its Pine River Gas Plant had shut down around 7 p.m. local time Tuesday due to an electrical failure but as of 6 a.m. Wednesday was processing all available gas with the A and B trains fully online. “The last processing train is currently circulating, and will come online as gas is available in the gathering system,” it said.

Due to inspection of Unit #4 at the Kemmerer (WY) Station, there will be no Park or Loan service available Monday through Friday this week, Northwest said.

Pacific Gas & Electric did not extend a high-inventory OFO beyond Saturday.

On Tuesday and Wednesday, Kern River will be restaging the Muddy Creek compressor and completing a semi-annual inspection of the turbine on unit #1. The work is expected to take 36 hours. Primary firm capacity behind the compressors will be restricted to 330 MMcf/d for gas days Nov. 13-14. If primary firm nominations exceed that amount, Kern River will allocate firm capacity pro rata based on each firm shipper’s contractual rights through the Muddy Creek Compressor Station. It will be necessary for shippers using receipt points upstream of Muddy Creek (Opal, Northwest Pipeline, Colorado Interstate, Overland Trails, and Muddy Creek Pool) to schedule some of their receipts from other sources. Kern River also will be making modifications to the Fillmore compressor unit and performing semi-annual inspections Tuesday and Wednesday. It is anticipated that only primary firm capacity will be available. The Goodsprings compressor is being inspected Tuesday and Kern will allow on only primary firm capacity to flow.

After analysis of anomalies discovered during its routine inspection program, NGPL has shut in its #1 line between Compressor Stations 301 and 302 in Segment 22. The #2 line is still flowing at a reduced pressure while repairs commence on the #1 line. Effective today until further notice, gas sourced out of the South Texas Zone for deliveries north or east into the Gulf Coast System will be restricted. AOR, IT and Secondary volumes will not be scheduled, while Primary services will be available at a reduced level.

The Senate is expected to approve a $60 billion transportation spending bill this week that calls for record funding for pipeline safety and inspection programs.

Transportation Secretary Rodney E. Slater announced Friday thatthe Department of Transportation (DOT) has formed a partnershipwith Washington state — the site of a major pipeline-relatedexplosion a year ago — to allow its safety inspectors toparticipate in the inspections of interstate pipelines.