American Gas - November 2012 - (Page 16)

n at u r a l g a s i n t h e n e w s searCh engine When Gas Makes News This month, American gas introduces “Search Engine,” a digest of recent news and commentary chronicling the world of natural gas Natural gas was never far from the front pages of the nation’s newspapers in October, even during this news-heavy campaign season. re-shorting activity and possibly bring about a favorable shift in the U.S. balance of trade,” said PwC’s Anthony J. Scamuffa. (http://pwc.to/P4CpMp) balance of Trade Early in the month, The Wall Street Journal announced on A1 that an energy consortium was moving forward with a $65 billion Alaskan natural-gas pipeline to export LNG to Asia. “The long-awaited effort is expected to have a significant impact not just on Alaska and its economy, but also on U.S. construction and manufacturing companies that would supply steel and other materials for an 800-mile pipeline and the plant that would convert the gas into liquid for export on tankers,” the Journal reported. (http://on.wsj.com/TgaBih) The Alaskan export project “would compete with more than a dozen proposed plants in the U.S. that hope to get federal approval to sell liquefied natural gas to energy-hungry countries, notably in Asia, where gas sells for several times the U.S. price…” the Journal noted. “The Department of Energy says it won’t rule on pending applications until the release, likely before year-end, of a twice-delayed report on the cumulative economic impact of greater natural-gas exports.” As for the Alaska project, it “may not be ready for a decade or more,” the consortium said. Construction of new pipelines is just one way natural gas could boost America’s struggling manufacturing sector. A few days after The Wall Street Journal report, PricewaterhouseCoopers released a study estimating that shale gas could enable U.S. manufacturers to lower raw materials and energy costs as much as $11.6 billion annually by 2025. More attractive pricing for natural gas liquids could drive down the price of chemicals used in 90 percent of all manufactured products, PwC reported. The abundance of NGLs could “potentially drive domestic Support and Security On the campaign trail, both candidates portrayed themselves as supporters of natural gas development. In a visit to an Ohio factory that makes natural-gas compressors on Oct. 10, Mitt Romney called for doubling the number of permits and licenses for oil and natural gas exploration and production on governmentcontrolled lands and waters. In the first debate Romney had claimed that oil and natural gas production was stagnant on federal lands, while the Obama administration pointed to record levels of domestic natural-gas production under its watch. (American Gas went to press before the election.) Yet the Obama administration is also warning that more safeguards are needed around the nation’s natural-gas infrastructure. On Oct. 11, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta declared that the U.S. faced a “cyber-Pearl Harbor” at the hands of foreign hackers who could potentially “gain control of crucial switches. They could derail passenger trains, or even more, derail passenger trains loaded with lethal chemicals. They could contaminate the water supply in major cities, or shut down the power grid across large parts of the country.” To support his concerns, Panetta cited attacks on the state oil company Saudi Aramco and natural gas producer RasGas of Qatar. The speech made the front page of The New York Times. Panetta urged Congress to pass the Cybersecurity Act of 2012, which would require new security standards at critical infrastructure such as power plants, water treatments, and gas pipelines. (The American Gas Association prefers Senator John McCain’s SECURE IT Act legislation, which richarD sine is editor of American Gas magazine. 16 AmericAn GAs november 2012 http://www.pwc.to/P4CpMp http://on.wsj.com/TGaBih

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of American Gas - November 2012

American Gas - November 2012
Table of Contents
President’s Message
Industry News
Ask AGA
Search Engine
In the Know
Part One: Pipelines
Company Profiles
Places to Be
Jobline
Advertisers Index
Noteworthies
Marketplace
Facts on Gas

American Gas - November 2012