Operational

Noting that it has limited operational flexibility to manage imbalances due to testing of its Bear Creek storage fields, Tennessee said it would implement Saturday a systemwide Imbalance Warning that requires all delivery point operators to keep actual daily takes out of the system equal to or greater than scheduled quantities and all receipt point operators to keep actual daily receipts into the system equal to or less than scheduled quantities. Both conditions apply regardless of an operator’s cumulative imbalance position. The pipeline also declared a force majeure Thursday night in connection with a leak on its line 3 section downstream of Station 110 near Moorehead, KY. Tennessee said it immediately activated its emergency response plan and dispatched personnel to the scene to close valves and isolate the segment between Main Line Valves 111-3 and 111-3A. Based on current nominations, Tennessee did not anticipate any outage-related service restrictions for the gas days of Thursday and Friday.

Consol Energy announced Wednesday that its plans to drill 70 wells in the Marcellus Shale play by the end of the year were slightly ahead of schedule, thanks to the 13 horizontal wells it drilled during 1Q2011.

Pacific Gas and Electric did not extend a systemwide Stage 2 low-inventory OFO beyond Thursday.

Citing limited operational flexibility to manage imbalances in market-area Zones 5 and 6 along with increased demand there, Tennessee issued an Imbalance Warning for the two zones Wednesday. Regardless of their cumulative imbalance positions, under the warning all delivery point operators are required to keep actual daily takes out of the system equal to or less than scheduled quantities, and all receipt point operators must keep actual daily receipts into the system equal to or greater than scheduled quantities, Tennessee said.

The first well drilled by Magnum Hunter Resources Corp. into the northwestern West Virginia portion of the Marcellus Shale tested at an initial production (IP) rate of 7.0 MMcfe/d and was producing as of Dec. 22 into the recently completed Eureka Hunter Pipeline system, the company said.

CenterPoint shippers are no longer under an Operational Alert that began last Tuesday due to unscheduled maintenance in the Perryville Hub area, the pipeline said Friday. The work previously had been expected to last until Saturday (see Daily GPI, Dec. 16).

Saying it had limited operational flexibility to manage imbalances and due to expected colder temperatures in its Northeast market area, Tennessee issued an Imbalance Warning in Zones 5 and 6 to take effect Monday. See the bulletin board for details on Imbalance Warning conditions. Tennessee also said Thursday it was lifting a force majeure on Line 527A-800 due to the sale of a damaged line section. “However, physical flow at…West Delta Block 109 will remain shut in until the purchasing party repairs the line” to Tennessee specifications, the pipeline said.

Northwest noted that during Dec. 1-15 maintenance at Pocatello Compressor Station, operational capacity at Kemmerer Compressor Station will be limited to 675,000 Dth/d. Since current primary firm scheduled quantities through Kemmerer exceed this capacity, Northwest said Monday afternoon it is issuing a Recall Advisory and declaring an OFO that will take effect Wednesday until further notice for shippers who have an OFO obligation (contract-specific, realignment and/or must-flow) through Kemmerer. See the bulletin board for advisory/OFO details.

Citing limited operational flexibility and storage injection capability, along with high linepack, Tennessee said a systemwide Imbalance Warning to guard against the creation of excessive positive imbalances will take effect Wednesday. Operators of receipt/delivery points must observe the Imbalance Warning requirements “regardless of their cumulative imbalance position,” the pipeline said.