American Gas - June 2014 - (Page 30)

larson on planning "if you haveN't doNe your prep work, thiNgs caN go very Badly, very Quickly." investments (see State Watch, page 18). Just as Hurricane Sandy did, I expect the polar vortex will stimulate creative thinking and tangible investment by the natural gas industry. Working together, the industry and regulators can help to ensure that we're prepared for whatever is coming next. Chris McGill is vice president, Policy Analysis, at AGA. fast respoNse to mid-wiNter rupture D espite multiple bouts with punishing cold weather that repeatedly tested both the integrity of their infrastructure as well as their advance operational planning, utilities across the country kept the gas flowing to millions of homes this winter. For two days in January, Xcel Energy did it with one hand tied behind its back. It started at 1:15 a.m. on Saturday, Jan. 25, when a TransCanada pipeline south of Winnipeg ruptured. No one was injured in the incident, but the company shut down two nearby pipelines as a safety precaution. As a result, Xcel Energy lost its primary feed for 130,000 customers in eastern North Dakota, northwestern Minnesota, and western Wisconsin, where temperatures hovered around 10 below zero. The utility immediately put its emergency plan into action, Kent Larson, Xcel Energy's senior vice president for operations, told American Gas. Gas storage fields in Michigan were tapped, and supply was pushed north from the Twin Cities. More than 850 business customers in the interruptible gas program were asked to curtail their usage. 30 AMeriCAn GAs june 2014 Initially, Xcel Energy officials were hopeful that would be enough, as system pressure had remained steady through mid-day. Then, around 8 p.m., came a disheartening drop from 550 to 475 pounds, and they knew much more had to be done. Xcel Energy issued a public appeal on the evening news for customers in the affected areas to lower their thermostats to a chilly 60 degrees and limit the use of all natural gas appliances. From 9 p.m. to midnight, phones throughout the region were ringing with automated calls deliv- ering the conservation message. By 2 a.m. Sunday, Xcel Energy could tell its customers were listening, as the pressure in the system was back to 550 pounds, said Cheryl Campbell, Xcel Energy's vice president of natural gas operations. But with temperatures expected to fall to minus 25 on Monday and blizzard conditions hindering repair efforts in Canada, they weren't out of the woods yet. They began preparing for the worst: calling up crews from throughout their eight-state service area for the massive re- january 2014 a record-settiNg moNth highest natural gas consumption: 3.2 tcf highest consumption day (jan. 7): 139 Bcf largest net withdrawal of working gas: > 950 Bcf previous record (january 2003): 857 Bcf

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American Gas - June 2014