LDC

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — Security researcher Brian Wallace was on the trail of hackers who had snatched a California university's housing files when he stumbled into a larger nightmare: Cyber-attackers had opened a pathway into the networks running the United States power grid.

Leading a natural gas distribution company is always a challenge because there are few businesses that deal so directly with their customer base, be it residential, commercial or industrial, as well as safety regulators, equipment and service providers, not to mention the city council or utility board that approves rates.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Duke Energy will spend about $4.9 billion in cash to acquire Piedmont Natural Gas, adding about a million new customers in the Carolinas and Tennessee. The Charlotte, North Carolina, companies are key partners in the Atlantic Coast Pipeline that will be the first major natural gas pipeline to serve the eastern part of the state. Piedmont shareholders will receive $60 in cash for each share of common stock. That's a 42% premium to Friday's closing price. Duke Energy Corp. will also assume about $1.8 billion in Piedmont debt.

In the current phase of the pipeline safety enhancement plan (PSEP), SoCalGas and San Diego Gas & Electric will test and replace about 1,000 miles of pipe throughout the system. While much of the construction work takes place in fairly remote locations, a significant portion is found in busy populated areas. Whether the work is in cities or unincorporated counties, in urban or rural space, customers and the local community are affected. Long before we received approval for PSEP, we knew community and customer outreach would be a critical factor for success.

Use of natural gas has two seasonal peaks, with consumption patterns predominantly driven by weather. The largest peak occurs during the winter, when cold weather increases the demand for natural gas space heating in the residential and commercial sectors. A second, smaller peak occurs in the summer when air conditioning use increases demand for electric power, an increasing portion of which is provided by natural gas-fired generators.

The Alliance pipeline will be shut down for an unspecified period of time due to the presence of excess hydrogen sulfide on the mainline, according to Alliance Canada. The event constitutes a force majeure. During the past 30-days, Alliance Canada has been flowing an average 1,792 MMcf/d across the border to Alliance U.S., with single-day flows reaching as high as 1,977 MMcf/d on the roughly 2,000 MMcf/d capacity system.

NEW YORK — These days it seems whatever can be burned to power a car, heat a home, make electricity or ship people and goods around the globe is being sold at bargain basement prices. Prices for coal, natural gas, oil and the fuels made from crude such as gasoline and diesel are all far less expensive than they have been in recent years.

Arkema Inc., Georg Fischer Central Plastics LLC, and BioResource Development LLC (BRD) have partnered on a project to install a polyamide 11 (PA11) piping system to connect landfill gas to the local gas distribution system near Omaha, NE.

The need for major changes to the nation’s energy infrastructure is why President Obama initiated a quadrennial cycle of energy reviews to provide a multiyear roadmap for U.S. energy policy. The result is the recent release of the initial installment of the first-ever Quadrennial Energy Review 2015 (QER) prepared by the White House task force.

ExxonMobil’s 2015 energy forecast posits natural gas as the fuel with the most demand growth between now and 2040, overtaking coal as the second most popular energy source with a 65% gain vs. its 2010 levels. By the end of the period, the report predicted more than 125 Bcf/d will be shipped by LNG or inter-regional pipeline.

In a departure from past policy, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) is considering allowing interstate pipelines to recoup the costs of complying with federal environmental and safety regulations.

Local distribution companies are the most essential ingredient if natural gas is to become the predominant energy fuel in North America. Although strong inroads have already been taken, a number of challenges remain before the LDCs can take their rightful place in the natural gas value chain.

Gas producers and pipelines seem in general agreement about a Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) proposal to improve coordination between gas suppliers and electric transmission providers. But regional electric buyers such as the ISOs and RTOs are a little disappointed.

Although plastic pipe has been actively used in the natural gas industry since the late 1950s, it is still considered by some to be the “the new kid on the block.” Perhaps one of the key reasons for this reputation is the fact that the plastics industry continues to push the envelope in creating higher performance materials that inspire new compositions and installation techniques. And the main benefactors are gas utilities, exploration and production companies and ultimately their customers.