Energy News OCTOBER 2021
From the Field Photo
Reclamation Area Rig - Martin Lake Coal Mine Photo by Robert MacNabb
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RRC Working to Ensure Natural Gas Supply is Prepared for Winter
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Reserves of Natural Gas Increasing in State’s Underground Storage Facilities Ahead of Winter
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RRC Completes Another Year of Exceeding Legislative Targets for Inspections
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RRC’s Commissioners Tap Representatives from Natural Gas Industry to Serve on Texas Energy Reliability Council
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Better Safe Than Sorry-RRC’s Damage Prevention Program Works to Diffuse Potential Dangers to State’s Pipeline
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Commissioners’ Corner
Upcoming Events RRC Open Meeting
November 2, 2021
RRC Open Meeting
November 3, 2021
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RRC Working to Ensure Natural Gas Supply Is Prepared for Winter The Railroad Commission began taking proactive steps in October to ensure that critical natural gas infrastructure is prepared for the coming cold season, even before rules implementing recent legislation meant to fortify the state’s energy supply against severe weather take effect. As we come out of the summer season, the RRC issued a Notice to Operators asking gas facility and gas pipeline facility operators to take all necessary actions as they prepare to operate during winter season 2021-2022. “We want to ensure we have done our best to help protect Texans if there is severe weather next winter,” said Wei Wang, RRC Executive director. “The RRC will work with natural gas operators in preparation for the upcoming winter. We are reminding them of updating their information with their electric providers for critical load serving electric generation and letting them know of best practices for winter preparation and be prepared.” The critical load application, which is an ERCOT form, and weatherization best practices are part of the Notice to Operators that was issued. In addition, the agency will work with large gas producers, natural gas storage facilities, transmission pipelines around the state on their winter preparedness; RRC staff began site visits to observe winter preparedness and plan to complete between 15,000-20,000 of such visits before the end of the year.
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Reserves of Natural Gas Increasing in State’s Underground Storage Facilities Ahead of Winter Additional Capacity Still Available to Utilities, Others
“Natural gas storage is a great way to avoid and mitigate any potential supply disruptions,” said Ted Wooten, RRC Chief Engineer. “The more gas we have in reserve, the better prepared we are.”
Texas’ underground natural gas storage facilities are growing their reserves ahead of winter. In their monthly gas storage reports to the Railroad Commission, operators show they have added an additional 100 billion cubic feet to the state’s storage reserves over the last month.
As the state prepares for the winter season, critical infrastructure facilities, such as electric power generators, should take full advantage of the state’s available underground gas storage capacity.
As of Oct. 15, the state has about 478 billion cubic feet of working gas in underground storage with room for about 75 billion cubic feet more additional storage. Operators of such facilities, both depleted oil and gas reservoirs and mined salt caverns, are required to report storage information to the RRC.
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Reserves can be utilized by natural gas utilities, electric power generators and others. The roughly 75 billion cubic feet of additional storage availability for natural gas could generate enough electricity for 8.61 million Texas homes for a month, according to data from the Energy Information Administration for electricity production from natural gas and average consumption per household. Monthly underground gas storage statistics are available on RRC’s website.
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RRC Completes Another Year of Exceeding Legislative Targets for Inspections The Railroad Commission has once again excelled in its various inspection programs that help ensure the protection of public safety and the environment by exceeding legislative targets for Fiscal Year 2021. The RRC, which has district offices throughout the state, topped annual performance goals set by the Texas Legislature for a broad range of inspection categories concerning oil and gas; intrastate pipelines, the alternative fuels LNG, CNG and LPG; and surface mining of coal. Inspections are critical to ensuring compliance with statewide rules designed to prevent pollution and dangerous situations that could affect residents and communities, or provide a safety net to allow us the luxury of such activities as weekend barbecuing with the use of propane. RRC has managed to exceed the Texas Legislature’s goals for inspections despite the global pandemic that impacted the agency’s operations and its regulated community. “I am proud to say that our dedicated staff continues to meet these challenges and others that have come our way and have excelled,” said Wei Wang, RRC Executive Director. “Throughout all of this, lawmakers have maintained their high expectations for the Railroad Commission to protect all Texans, and we would not want it any other way.” Many of RRC’s success measures for division and inspector levels are highlighted below:
Category
Legislative Target
Number of oil and gas well and facility inspections performed
Achieved
189,367
308,922
20,000
20,604
Number of standard and follow-up comprehensive pipeline safety and inspections performed
3,129
3,598
Number of pipeline accident investigations and special investigations performed
1,200
2,043
400
416
Average number of oil and gas well and facility inspections performed by district office staff
1,199
1,816
Average number of LPG/CNG/LNG safety inspections per inspector
1,350
1,386
Number of LPG/CNG/LNG safety inspections performed
Number of Coal Mining Inspections
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RRC’s Commissioners Tap Representatives from Natural Gas Industry to Serve on Texas Energy Reliability Council On Oct. 12, RRC’s Commissioners appointed five members to serve on the Texas Energy Reliability Council (TERC). The members represent different segments of the state’s natural gas industry as required by legislation. TERC was formalized in Senate Bill 3 to “ensure that the energy and electric industries in this state meet high priority human needs and address critical infrastructure concerns” and to “enhance coordination and communication in the energy and electric industries in this state.” The five members appointed to TERC by RRC’s commissioners will join Chairman Wayne Christian and other representatives appointed by the Governor and the Public Utility Council and also officials from other agencies. RRC’s appointees are: • Jason Herrick, president of Pantera Energy, representing the operation of wells producing natural gas. • Grant Ruckel, vice president for government affairs at Energy Transfer, representing the pipelines. • Danny Wesson, executive vice president of operations for Diamondback, representing injection and storage of produced water. • Graham Bacon, executive vice president and chief operating officer of Enterprise Products, representing gas processing. • Keith Wall, director of regulatory affairs for Southern Gas Operations at CenterPoint Energy, representing local gas distribution companies.
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Better Safe Than Sorry RRC’s Damage Prevention Program Works to Diffuse Potential Dangers to State’s Pipelines The Railroad Commission does not just enforce standards on the immediate safety of intrastate pipelines, but it also enforces standards on the prevention of damage to such pipelines. Pipeline companies, excavators and any other individual who digs have a responsibility to make every effort to prevent the damage of pipelines. Think of pipelines as having internal threats, such as lack of servicing and poor maintenance, and also external threats, such as those from mechanical diggers, scrappers and augers; and hand tools, such as shovels and pickaxes. Much of the focus of RRC’s Pipeline Damage Prevention Program, which started on Sept. 1, 2007, is preventing external threats from becoming reality and to make sure that proper preventative measures have been taken to protect public safety and the environment. The program enforces regulations laid out in Chapter 18 of RRC’s section of the Texas Administrative Code.
includes compliance analysts. They also utilize field inspectors from the Pipeline Safety Program, who are based at district offices across the state. “The number one thing for us is safety,” said Pete Longoria, a Pipeline Safety inspector and the specialized lead over public awareness and Damage Prevention inspections, who is based in Corpus Christi. “The goal of Damage Prevention is to reduce damage to pipelines.” Since it started, RRC’s Damage Prevention Program has made significant strides in reducing incidents resulting in pipeline damage in large part because more people are calling before digging. In 2008, there were 6.44 pipeline damage incidents per 1,000 requests to locate underground utilities. In 2020, the number dropped to 2.5 incidents per 1,000 requests to locate. Damage prevention rules include requirements for pipeline companies to notify nearby residents of the presence of certain pipelines, signage warning of the presence of pipelines and providing locators for parties who
The Damage Prevention Program is based in Austin with staff that
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Education wish to dig. The rules also require those seeking to dig more than 16 inches into the ground to call 811 for a locating service.
In an effort to prevent pipeline damage and the dire consequences because of it, the RRC has a robust outreach program to provide information about the state’s damage prevention rules.
Also, both pipeline companies and excavators are required to report any damage to pipelines to the RRC. Failure to follow damage prevention rules can result in fines.
“We do try to be as proactive as possible,” said Ricardo Gamez, a compliance analyst with RRC’s program.
“The biggest mistake we see is people making assumptions,” said Jamie Renard, a Damage Prevention compliance analyst. “They use a backhoe and think, ‘I’m a couple of inches away; I’m OK.’” Excavators should be wary, she said. The earth shifts and erodes, so even if a backhoe operator can use the machine with extreme precision, it is better to error on the side of caution to prevent accidents from happening. RRC works closely with the Damage Prevention Council of Texas and Texas 811, a free service that individuals should call to have underground utilities located, including pipelines, before digging on their property.
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prevention rules actually spread best via word of mouth, Gamez said.
Gamez, who is bilingual in English and Spanish, attends conferences and conventions around the state, such as the annual Texas Municipal League Conference and the Sunbelt Builders Show, events in which lots of excavators would be in attendance.
Excavators who he reaches out to share what they have learned with their coworkers and colleagues doing similar work.
“My main drive is to get out and share this important information, be that in person at events, virtually or on the phone,” Gamez said. “Part of that is trying to educate a lot of people who, unfortunately, are not aware of our rules until they have a damage and they are dealing with our office. We do a lot of trying to get out in front of people to give them more materials and pass out our business cards so they can reach out to us.”
Renard said that the Damage Prevention Program increased the number of Spanish speakers on staff and are better able to help and inform individuals who may not speak English well. Many of the program’s educational materials are also printed in Spanish. Renard notes said the program is working on improving data analytics to better geographically target specific areas for education efforts that may be having higher rates of pipeline damage.
Pipeline companies are typically aware of RRC’s rules on damage prevention, but excavators do not have a process that forces them to become familiar with the agency’s requirements, which is why the education component of the Damage Prevention Program is so important.
Inspections and Enforcement Inspectors from RRC’s Pipeline Safety Program, which are based throughout the state, conduct inspections for the Damage Prevention Program.
“There is no excavator license that they have to get in which they need to learn a specific set of information about our processes,” Gamez said.
Damage Prevention inspections focus on issues in Chapter 18 of the Texas Administrative Code.
While Gamez and his colleagues try to attend as many conferences and conventions as possible, including safety events put on by the Damage Prevention Council of Texas, word about RRC’s damage
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Most cases involving excavator issues are handled by Damage Prevention; however, major cases involving house fires and fatalities may also have to go
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through the agency’s Enforcement Program for any enhancements in penalties.
performing tasks that they were trained on. Inspectors will check to make sure the operator is engaging with communities and is sending out educational materials to residents, emergency responders and public officials up and down the length of the pipeline.
However, if an investigation into a major pipeline emergency is being led by Pipeline Safety, then that group may handle certain Chapter 18-types of enforcement cases. “We work closely together on the major impact stuff,” Renard said.
The inspectors will examine the content of written programs for carrying out public awareness and, if an area the pipeline goes through is mostly populated by people who speak a language other than English, that the written educational materials about the pipeline are provided in that language.
Pipeline Safety inspectors conduct investigations for Damage Prevention; perform standard comprehensive inspections of pipelines, which are regular compliance checks done usually every three to five years (except natural gas distribution systems, which are inspected annually); and specialized inspections, which may look at specific public awareness programs for the pipeline, Longoria said.
Inspectors will look to make sure that logs are maintained with four years’ worth of data on requests to locate pipelines and are accurate. “It is safety, safety, safety” Longoria said. “Damage Prevention is doing two things. It’s creating a safer working environment for operators and educating the public of the existence and the reliability of oil and gas pipelines in their communities.”
For instance, inspectors check to make sure pipeline operators’ employee training programs do what they need to do and evaluate individuals
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Chairman Christian CO M M I S S I O N E R S’ CO R N E R
In October, Chairman Christian enjoyed spending time on the Texas coast touring the Port of Corpus Christi. In 2020, the Port of Corpus increased crude oil shipments totaling 96.4 million tons and saw a 26 percent increase in liquefied natural gas (LNG) shipments at 8.7 million tons. ICYMI, the Chairman published a number of opinion editorials during October in the Corpus Christi Caller Times, The Washington Times, and World Oil.
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Commissioner Craddick CO M M I S S I O N E R S’ CO R N E R
In October, Commissioner Craddick was honored to speak with several business and industry groups. Beginning with the Greater Houston Partnership, Craddick gave an update to business leaders and spoke about ongoing agency projects related to Winter Strom Uri and Railroad Commission IT upgrades. Additionally, Craddick was pleased to provide the keynote address to Texas Conservative Coalition Research Institute’s TXEnergyProject. This inaugural meeting kicked off a new initiative focused on pushing back against overburdensome regulation at the federal level and allowing Texas to continue to provide responsible and reliable oversight to the industry right here in our own backyard. Lastly, Commissioner Craddick continues the important work related to SB 3 implementation. Conversations with legislators, industry, stakeholders, and various state agencies are ongoing and will continue to be this agency’s primary focus as we strive to develop rules and regulations that protect all Texans. Ensuring that the Railroad Commission of Texas is appropriately prepared for the energy needs of this state is critical.
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Commissioner Wright CO M M I S S I O N E R S’ CO R N E R
Last week, Commissioner Wright visited the Permian Basin International Oil Show (PBIOS) in Odessa, Texas where he had the opportunity to view the latest innovations in the oil and gas industry and meet with vendors, attendees, and local officials. During his visit, Commissioner Wright noted how the event serves as a showcase for industry innovation, saying: “The oil and gas industry has always been at the forefront of innovation and rising to meet new challenges. This event allows me to see many of the newest products and potential solutions to many of the issues facing Texas energy production, such as recycling, greater utilization of stranded or flared gas, and weatherization of our critical infrastructure. I figure if I’m going to be regulating something, I ought to be out here with my boots on the ground.”
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Oil & Gas Production Statistics
View monthly production totals of crude oil, condensate and total oil; and of gas well gas, casinghead gas, and total natural gas.
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Enforcement Actions
The Commission has primary oversight and enforcement of the state’s oil and gas industry and intrastate pipeline safety. View RRC’s Latest Enforcement Actions here.
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Public GIS Viewer
The Public GIS Viewer allows users to view oil, gas and pipeline data in a map view.
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