LOS ANGELES, Oct. 19, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Southern
California Gas Co. (SoCalGas) today provided an update on
comprehensive infrastructure, technology and safety enhancements
made at its Aliso Canyon natural gas storage facility. The company
continues to make significant progress towards completing the
Comprehensive Safety Review required by California's Division of Oil, Gas, and
Geothermal Resources (DOGGR). In addition, the inner tubing of
every approved well has been replaced. In total, more than 40 miles
of new steel piping has been installed. Once SoCalGas has met all
of the requirements of the Comprehensive Safety Review, the company
will request regulatory approval to begin replenishing the supply
of natural gas at the facility to support regional energy
reliability.
Well Inspections
To date, 27 storage wells at the
facility have passed all of the tests required under
DOGGR's Comprehensive Safety Review. The remaining wells
either have been temporarily and mechanically sealed off from the
storage reservoir until further testing is completed or have been
permanently plugged and taken out of service, in compliance with
regulations and state law.
In addition to being mechanically sealed from the pressure in
the field, the wells also are filled with fluid that provides
additional protection. Daily observation of these temporarily
sealed wells will continue and they are also being monitored in
real time for pressure changes.
Infrastructure Upgrades
In accordance with new
regulations and state laws, withdrawal and injection of natural gas
now will occur only through newly installed inner tubing of wells
approved for use by DOGGR. Physical barriers, or casings, around
the new inner tubing will provide a secondary layer of protection
against potential leaks.
As noted above, SoCalGas has replaced the inner tubing of every
DOGGR-approved storage well with new pipe. In total, more than 40
miles of new steel piping has been installed.
Technology and Safety Enhancements
In addition to the
Comprehensive Safety Review of storage wells, SoCalGas is
introducing a number of new enhancements to further promote safety
at the facility, including:
- An infrared fence-line methane detection system with eight
pairs of infrared methane monitors;
- Around-the-clock pressure monitoring of all wells;
- Twice daily patrols to visually examine every well;
- Daily scanning of each well using sensitive infrared thermal
imaging cameras that can detect leaks; and
- An air quality notification system that provides residents the
opportunity to receive prompt information via phone call, text
message and/or email, in the event of a reportable release of
natural gas. Community members can register for notifications via
the SoCalGas website.
A video explaining these safety enhancements is available
here.
Strengthening Communications with the Community
To
strengthen communications with the Porter
Ranch community, SoCalGas has formed a new Aliso Canyon
Community Advisory Committee that consists of residents, business
owners, and community leaders from various constituencies
throughout the Porter Ranch area,
as well as representatives from faith-based organizations, the
Los Angeles Police Department, the
Los Angeles Fire Department, and
other stakeholders.
Well Inspection Process
The protocol for storage well
inspections was established by DOGGR in consultation with the
Lawrence Livermore and Berkeley National Laboratories and in
compliance with state laws.
The Comprehensive Safety Review includes temperature and noise
tests, ultrasonic imaging, cement bond tests, magnetic flux leakage
tests, multi-arm caliper tests, and hydro-pressure tests of both
the wells' casings and of the steel tubing within the wells.
A video of the comprehensive inspection process is available
here.
Root Cause Analysis
SoCalGas continues to work in
support of the CPUC Safety and Enforcement Division's and DOGGR's
ongoing investigation of the root cause of the leak at Aliso
Canyon. The investigation is now expected to be completed during
the first half of 2017, but the timing is under the control of the
CPUC Safety Enforcement Division and DOGGR.
About Southern California Gas Co.
Southern California
Gas Co. (SoCalGas) has been delivering clean, safe and reliable
natural gas to its customers for more than 145 years. It is the
nation's largest natural gas distribution utility, providing
service to 21.6 million consumers connected through 5.9 million
meters in more than 500 communities. The company's service
territory encompasses approximately 20,000 square miles throughout
central and Southern California,
from Visalia to the Mexican
border. SoCalGas is a regulated subsidiary of Sempra Energy (NYSE:
SRE), a Fortune 500 energy services holding company based in
San Diego.
Contact:
socalgas.com/newsroom |
@SoCalGasNews
This press release contains statements that are not historical
fact and constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning
of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These
statements can be identified by words like "believes," "expects,"
"anticipates," "plans," "estimates," "projects," "forecasts,"
"contemplates," "intends," "assumes," "depends," "should," "could,"
"would," "will," "confident," "may," "potential," "possible,"
"proposed," "target," "pursue," "goals," "outlook," "maintain" or
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goals, opportunities, projections, initiatives, objectives or
intentions. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of
performance. They involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions.
Future results may differ materially from those expressed in the
forward-looking statements.
Forward-looking statements are necessarily based upon various
assumptions involving judgments with respect to the future and
other risks, including, among others: local, regional, and national
economic, competitive, political, legislative, legal, and
regulatory conditions, decisions, and developments; actions and the
timing of actions, including general rate case decisions, new
regulations, issuances of permits to construct, operate and
maintain facilities and equipment and to use land, franchise
agreements, and licenses for operation, by the California Public
Utilities Commission, California State Legislature, U.S. Department
of Energy, California Division of Oil, Gas and Geothermal
Resources, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, California Energy
Commission, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Pipeline and
Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, California Air Resources
Board, South Coast Air Quality Management District, cities and
counties, and other regulatory, governmental and environmental
bodies in the United States; the
timing and success of business development efforts and
construction, maintenance and capital projects, including risks in
obtaining, maintaining or extending permits, licenses, certificates
and other authorizations on a timely basis and risks in obtaining
adequate and competitive financing for such projects; the
resolution of civil and criminal litigation and regulatory
investigations; deviations from regulatory precedent or practice
that result in a reallocation of benefits or burdens among
shareholders and ratepayers and delays in regulatory agency
authorization to recover costs in rates from customers; the
availability of electric power and natural gas, and natural gas
pipeline and storage capacity, including disruptions caused by
failures in the North American transmission grid, moratoriums on
the ability to withdraw natural gas from or inject natural gas into
storage facilities, pipeline explosions and equipment failures;
energy markets; the timing and extent of changes and volatility in
commodity prices; the impact on the value of our natural gas
storage assets from low natural gas prices, low volatility of
natural gas prices and the inability to procure favorable long-term
contracts for natural gas storage services; risks that our partners
or counterparties will be unable (due to liquidity issues,
bankruptcy or otherwise) or unwilling to fulfill their contractual
commitments; capital markets conditions, including the availability
of credit and the liquidity of our investments, and inflation and
interest rates; cybersecurity threats to the energy grid, natural
gas storage and pipeline infrastructure, the information and
systems used to operate our businesses and the confidentiality of
our proprietary information and the personal information of our
customers and employees; terrorist attacks that threaten system
operations and critical infrastructure; wars; weather conditions,
natural disasters, catastrophic accidents, equipment failures and
other events that may disrupt our operations, damage our facilities
and systems, cause the release of greenhouse gases and harmful
emissions, and subject us to third-party liability for property
damage or personal injuries, fines and penalties, some of which may
not be covered by insurance or may be disputed by insurers; the
inability or determination not to enter into long-term supply and
sales agreements or long-term firm capacity agreements due to
insufficient market interest, unattractive pricing or other
factors; and other uncertainties, all of which are difficult to
predict and many of which are beyond our control.
These risks and uncertainties are further discussed in the
reports that the company has filed with the Securities and Exchange
Commission. These reports are available through the EDGAR system
free of charge on the SEC's website, www.sec.gov. Investors should
not rely unduly on any forward-looking statements. These
forward-looking statements speak only as of the date hereof, and
the company undertakes no obligation to update or revise these
forecasts or projections or other forward-looking statements,
whether as a result of new information, future events or
otherwise.
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SOURCE Southern California Gas Company