Regulators

Wyoming regulators said Thursday a mechanical failure was the root cause of a natural gas well blowout late in April at a Chesapeake Energy Corp. drilling site, but operating errors also were contributing factors. The incident, in which no one was injured, lasted about three days (see Daily GPI, April 30).

Portland, OR-based NW Natural has accelerated a utility rate decrease for its distribution utility customers in Oregon and Washington, asking regulators in both states to approve rate decreases totaling $39 million. Separately last Friday, CEO Gregg Kantor also reported during a 1Q2012 earnings conference call that the company’s joint venture drilling program with a unit of Encana Corp. and a merchant gas storage project in California passed important milestones during the quarter.

Regulators with the Kentucky Public Service Commission (PSC) have approved plans by two PPL Corp. subsidiaries to build a natural gas-fired power plant in Jefferson County and to purchase an existing gas-fired plant in Oldham County.

Environmental regulators in British Columbia (BC) have approved a request by Pacific Trail Pipelines LP (PTP) for an expansion to the Kitimat to Summit Lake (KSL) Looping Project, a proposed pipeline to transport natural gas from the Horn River Basin in Western Canada to the Pacific coast.

Environmental regulators in British Columbia (BC) have approved a request by Pacific Trail Pipelines LP (PTP) for an expansion to the Kitimat to Summit Lake (KSL) Looping Project, a proposed pipeline to transport natural gas from the Horn River Basin in Western Canada to the Pacific coast.

Researchers with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) say there has been a “remarkable” increase in the number of earthquakes in the Midcontinent region, and believe the seismic activity is more than likely attributable to injection wells that handle wastewater from oil and gas drilling.

In a program authorized by state regulators late last year, Atlanta Gas Light Co. (AGL) on Monday issued a request for proposals (RFP) for developers interested in building compressed natural gas (CNG) fueling stations for commercial fleets and passenger vehicles in Georgia. The RFP envisions a five-year push that could cost nearly $12 million.

For the second time this month Pacific Gas and Electric Co. (PG&E) on Wednesday admitted in a filing with state regulators that it violated federal and state safety testing standards for a part of its distribution pipeline system in San Mateo, CA, within a few miles of the September, 2010 San Bruno transmission pipeline rupture and explosion. PG&E said it discovered the violation on part of an eight-inch diameter distribution feeder line Jan. 26, and took “immediate corrective action” the following day. The combination utility explained its error in a letter to Michelle Cooke, interim director of the California Public Utility Commission’s (CPUC) Consumer Protection and Safety Division. Under federal Department of Transportation standards and PG&E’s own state-mandated rules, pipe-to-soil measurements for corrosion must be completed every 75 days. The feeder main had last been tested Oct. 5 and should have been retested by the end of 2011. “Due to error and oversight, PG&E did not identify this issue as ‘reportable’ under the CPUC [rules] until after 10 days had elapsed,” the utility told the CPUC.

Already subjected to pointed criticism from regulators and lawmakers, a $2.2 billion, four-year plan for enhancing Pacific Gas and Electric Co.’s (PG&E) natural gas pipeline system is not likely to be approved by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) anytime soon, PG&E utility President Chris Johns told financial analysts Thursday on an earnings conference call.