PUC Winter Natural Gas Reliability Overview Reports Now Available; But Do Not Address Winter Storm Elliot Issues

On November 13, the Public Utility Commission released 2023 Winter Reliability Overview Reports from the state’s major natural gas distribution companies (NGDCs), along with a related Readiness Report from the Energy Association of Pennsylvania.

According to projections provided by EAP, overall natural gas consumption this coming winter is forecast to be slightly higher than last year – but noticeably lower natural gas prices are expected to make residential home heating less expensive, as compared to last winter.

Additionally, all of Pennsylvania’s major NGDCs indicated that they have sufficient supplies and procedures in place to ensure reliable natural gas service this winter.

Natural Gas Reliability Overview Reports

The reliability overview reports provide insights regarding preparations for conditions that may affect service reliability, supply, and prices for the winter months, including topics such as system readiness; employee safety/readiness; communications outreach; gas supply and planning; and natural gas demand for electric generators.

The winter readiness overviews can be viewed using the following links:

-- Columbia Gas of PA

-- National Fuel Gas

-- PECO Energy

-- Peoples Natural Gas & Peoples Gas

-- Philadelphia Gas Works

-- UGI Utilities – Gas Division

-- Energy Association of PA

The full reports are also posted on the PUC’s Reliability webpage.

[Note: The reports did not indicate what steps the natural gas utilities have taken in response to severe natural gas availability and natural gas-fired electric generation issues experienced during Winter Storm Elliot in December 2022.]

Related Article - Heating Season:

-- New NERC Winter Reliability Assessment Finds Elevated Risk Of Blackouts In Extreme Weather Conditions; Natural Gas Supplies Still Vulnerable To These Conditions With 'Devastating Consequences'  [PaEN]

Special 2023 Oil & Gas Compliance Reports:

-- DEP Issued At Least 472 Violations To 90 Conventional Oil & Gas Operators; 20 NOVs To 10 Shale Gas Operators For Abandoning Their Wells Without Plugging Them So Far In 2023  [PaEN]

-- DEP Issues Record 5,653 Notices Of Violation To Conventional Oil & Gas Operators So Far In 2023; ‘Culture Of Non-Compliance’ Continues  [PaEN] 

-- Shale Gas Operators On Track To Have More Violations In 2023 - Frozen Gas Infrastructure; Explosion; Pad Fire; Uncontrolled Gas Venting; Frack Outs; Major Spills;  Pipeline Crashing Thru A Home Highlight 2023 So Far  [PaEN] 

Weekly PA Oil & Gas Industry Public Notice Dashboards:

-- PA Oil & Gas Weekly Compliance Dashboard - Nov. 11 to 17 -- 37 Conventional Abandoned Wells; 1,260+ Shale Gas Spill; 1,000 Gallon Conventional Oil Spill In State Park; Rager Mtn Gas Storage Still Not Cleaned Up  [PaEN]

-- PA Oil & Gas Industrial Facilities: Permit Notices/Opportunities To Comment - November 18 [PaEN]

-- DEP Invites Comments On Renewal Of Danco Industries Petroleum Contaminated Wastewater Treatment Facility In Venango County  [PaEN] 

-- DEP Posted 66 Pages Of Permit-Related Notices In November 18 PA Bulletin  [PaEN]

Related Articles This Week:

-- State Dept. Of Health Pushing For Changes To Reduce Adverse Health Impacts From Natural Gas Development  [PaEN] 

-- Beaver County Residents Call For Accountability, Emergency Preparedness After Dozens Of Malfunctions, Pollution From Shell Petrochemical Plant  [PaEN] 

-- PUC Alert: Dec. 1 Utility Prices Are Changing - Natural Gas (+149% to -64.2%); Electric (+18.8% to -25.7%)  [PaEN] 

-- PUC Winter Natural Gas Reliability Overview Reports Now Available; But Do Not Address Winter Storm Elliot Issues  [PaEN]

-- Utility Dive: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Investigating Possible Winter Storm Elliott Market Manipulation By Natural Gas Pipelines, Power Plants, Marketers

NewsClips This Week:

-- Observer-Reporter Editorial: Is Shapiro’s Voluntary Agreement With CNX The Right Move For Gas Well Safety?  ‘We Do Not Trust Foxes To Guard Henhouses’ 

-- Warren Times Editorial: Right Partnership On Gas Wells?  ‘We Do Not Trust Foxes To Guard Henhouses’ [Shapiro-CNX Statement of Mutual Interests]

-- Spotlight PA - Lilly Riddle: Companies Behind Mariner East II Pipeline Paid $42 Million In Pollution Fines To Pennsylvania

-- Spotlight PA: Did Mariner East Pipeline Construction Affect Your Water?  Contact Spotlight PA

-- EnergyPortal.eu: Mariner East Pipeline Penalties Could Set Precedent For Environmental Enforcement; Attorney General’s Office Cited For Lack Of Transparency On Remediation Efforts

-- TribLive: Westmoreland Water Authority Warns Of Mandatory Water Restrictions As Dry Autumn Persists, Beaver Run Reservoir Continues To Fall [Shale Gas Drillers Withdrawn Water From The Reservoir For Fracking] 

-- TribLive: Westmoreland Water Authority Halts Fracking Water Withdrawals By CNX, Olympus Energy At Beaver Run Reservoir As Part Of Water Conservation Plan [Shale Gas Operators Took 301 Million Gallons From Reservoir This Year]

-- Williamsport Sun: Fracking Wastewater Spills At Eureka Resources Facility In Williamsport 

-- PA Capital-Star: PA’s Natural Gas Development Is Hurting Its Oldest Residents

-- Spotlight PA: PA Leads The Nation For Lyme Disease Cases; Oil & Gas Development, Fragmentation In Forests Boosts The Risk 

-- TribLive: PA Leads Nation In Lyme Disease Cases, Oil & Gas Development, Other Forest Fragmentation Boosting The Risk

-- Williamsport Sun: PA Leads The Nation For Lyme Disease Cases; Oil & Gas Development, Fragmentation In Forests Boosts The Risk 

-- Beaver County Residents Call For Accountability, Emergency Preparedness After Dozens Of Malfunctions, Pollution From Shell Petrochemical Plant  [PaEN]

-- TribLive: Invenergy Scraps Plan For Natural Gas-Fired Power Plant In Allegheny County

-- The Allegheny Front: EPA Finds Spills, Leaks, Heavy Metals At MAX Environmental Landfill In Westmoreland County [75% Of Waste Comes From Shale Gas Industry ]

-- Williamsport Sun: Fracking Wastewater Spills At Eureka Resources Facility In Williamsport

-- Williamsport Sun Letter: Fracking Falsehood Spread By Sen. Yaw, Others - By Dean Marshall, Lock Haven

-- WHYY: Amtrak Backs Off Plan To Install Natural Gas Boilers At 30th Street Station In Philadelphia, Crediting New Climate Goals 

-- Hydrogen Insight: Plug Power Share Price Plunges 40% After Firm Admits It Could Fold In Next 12 Months [Key Player In Western PA Hydrogen Hub] 

-- New York State: Massive Southern Tier Gas Drilling Spree Proposed - 6,500 Land Leases Sought For Plan To Extract Shale Gas, Store Carbon Dioxide

-- New York State: NY DEC, State Legislators Muted On Massive Plan To Extract Natural Gas, Store Carbon Dioxide In Southern Tier; But Green Groups Outraged

-- TribLive/AP: Ohio Commission Approves Natural Gas Drilling In State Parks, Wildlife Areas Despite Fraud Investigation

-- Financial Times: New EU Rules On Methane Leaks To Hit Oil And Gas Importers

-- Reuters: EU Agrees To Law To Hit Fossil Fuel, LNG Natural Gas Imports With Methane Emissions Limits 

-- Bloomberg: EU Sets New Rules On LNG Natural Gas Imports - Production, Transportation

-- Bloomberg: Oil Majors’ Carbon Capture Plans Dubbed A ‘Dangerous Delusion’

[Posted: November 13, 2023]  PA Environment Digest