American Gas - July 2013 - (Page 13)

photo couRtesY oF neW JeRseY nAtuRAL GAs digest Continued from page 12 transportation. The program expects to develop catalysts and lab-scale reactors to convert methane far more cheaply. Though hurricanes may now pose less risk to natural gas prices in the short run, they can have a longer-range impact during the subsequent winter heating season. When Hurricanes Katrina and Rita struck the Gulf of Mexico within one month of each other in 2005, Gulf gas output was cut by more than 50 percent, Viswanath says. These events were hugely disruptive to gas supplies, and prices soared as a result. Since that time, as the industry has uncovered new sources in the Marcellus and Utica shale deposits in Pennsylvania and Ohio, the Gulf’s share of total U.S. natural gas production has dropped dramatically, from 24.4 percent in 2001 to about 6 percent last year, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Similarly, in 2001, there were as many as 176 gas rigs in the Gulf of Mexico region, and a total of about 1,000 nationwide, says Houston-based Baker Hughes Inc. At the start of 2012, there were only 41 gas rigs in the Gulf and a total of 811 nationwide. Hurricanes are still important, since nearly half of all gas processing still takes place in Texas and Louisiana, “but they are only one of many factors we look at” in predicting natural gas pricing, said Viswanath. She added that summer temperatures also are an important indicator, with natural gas playing a larger role in utilities’ powergeneration strategies. “When Hurricane Sandy hit, the area lost some nuclear capacity,” she said. The storm came late in the season, when there isn’t as much electricity demand, “but because the region is more reliant on natural gas for power generation than it used to be, demand rose when the nuclear plants lost load, as did regional prices.” A major event like Sandy can have a longerrange impact, she added, since increased consumption “can affect the ability of the industry to restock for the winter heating season.” This year’s Colorado State University hurricane forecast, issued April 10, calls for “enhanced activity” along the U.S. coastline. The hurricane season runs from June 1 to Nov. 30. –G.J. Lehigh Valley, Pa.-based Air Products, which has shipped 100 LnG heat exchangers to some of the world’s most remote natural gas fields, has received its first-ever major heat exchange order for a liquefaction project in the United States. Air Products will supply its proprietary c3mr liquefaction technology and equipment to Dominion’s cove Point LnG import facility in Lusby, md. expected to be running in 2017, the facility is expected to produce 5.25 million tons per year of LnG. The Future Is Now The DP-IR™ is an infrared leak detector for portable and mobile applications that measures 1 ppm thru 100% gas by volume. The RMLD-IS™ can detect leaks up to 100 feet away. It can safely survey hard to access places and is the ideal instrument for Distribution and Transmission Piping Systems. 1-800-HEATH-US www.heathus.com JULY 2013 AmericAn GAs 13 http://www.heathus.com http://www.heathus.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of American Gas - July 2013

American Gas - July 2013
Contents
President’s Message
Subject Index
Shining a Light for Gas Efficiency
Digest
Issues
Issues
Update
Need to Know
By the Numbers
Places
Scratch, Sniff—Evacuate?
Capitol Hill
Cape Canaveral
The Corner Office
AGA Ops Conference
Elm Street
Work in Progress
Profile
For Good Measure
Law
Jobs
Marketplace
Buyer’s Guide
Headway

American Gas - July 2013