Pipelines
Cradle Boring Makes A Comeback
Installing pipeline across the United States, once a booming business in the 1960s, slowed in the late 80s and 90s. Today, thanks to the discovery of shale oil and gas, it’s back – and so is the cradle boring machine. In fact, there has been a dramatic increase in pipeline projects worldwide in rec..
Uniform Soil Groups For Pipe Installation
By Amster Howard, P.E. The language in pipe installation specifications should be as clear, concise and consistent as possible. The engineer often relies on American Water Works Association (AWWA) and American Standards of Testing and Measurement (ASTM) standards and manuals to prepare the project ..
Pad Your Trench or Haul Material with Ozzie's Mini-padder
With Ozzie’s Mini-padder, you can pad and backfill your trench or haul and/or handle material with a loader bucket, all with one machine. This mini-padding machine features a quick-connect padding head system that allows it to be quickly converted from a padding machine to a track-powered loader. O..
New Pipeline Safety Proposal Contains Multiple New Requirements
Pipeline industry executives are pouring over the 500-plus page pipeline safety proposal from the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), an effort that will take some time before informed comments can be made. The initial comment deadline is at the end of May. “The typical 6..
DTE Announces Plans to Invest $1.4 Billion In Natural Gas Pipeline Infrastructure
Over the next five years, DTE Gas plans to invest $1.4 billion into its Michigan natural gas pipeline infrastructure in an effort to maintain the safety and reliability of the system, while simultaneously striving to achieve affordability for its residential and business customers. The plans includ..
Natural Gas Pipeline Explodes, Burns Man at Nearby Home
A natural gas explosion at a Pennsylvania pipeline complex sent flames hundreds of feet into the air on Friday and burned a nearby home, injuring the man who lived there, officials said. The state Department of Environmental Protection said the blast was traced to a 36-inch pipeline, which exploded..
Thieves in Mexico Build Tunnel, Steal Fuel
As reported by The Associated Press, authorities in central Mexico discovered thieves constructed a tunnel and camouflaged trucks aiming to steal and transport fuel from government pipelines. Police found the tunnel in the state of Guanajuato, earlier this month. This is not a new problem; thousands..
Registration Opens For UESI/ASCE Pipelines 2016 Conference
The American Society of Civil Engineers’ newest institute, the Underground Engineering & Surveying Institute (UESI), will hold its annual Pipelines Conference in Kansas City, MO, from July 17 -20. This year’s conference is appropriately titled “Out of Sight, Out of Mind, Not Out Of Risk.” The Pipel..
Property Values Unaffected By Presence Of Pipelines, New Report Finds
The presence of an underground natural gas transmission pipeline does not affect the sales prices or value of residential properties, according to a new study, Pipeline Impact to Property Value and Property Insurability, conducted by Integra Realty Resources (IRR) on behalf of the Interstate Natural..
U.S., Canada to Require $546 Billion in Gas, Oil, and NGL Infrastructure Investment
WASHINGTON—The United States and Canada will require annual average midstream natural gas, crude oil and natural gas liquids midstream infrastructure investment of about $26 billion per year, or $546 billion (real 2015$) total over the 21-year period from 2015 to 2035, a new study finds. Th..
Flint Crisis Stirring Possible Congressional Action
The efforts in the Senate to address water infrastructure funding needs in the wake of the Flint crisis appear to have born their first fruits. At the end of February, Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK), chairman of the Environment and Public Works Committee, announced an agreement with Sen. Debbie Stabenow (..
INGAA, CEPA Boards Vote To Certify Pipeline Inspectors By 2018
The board of directors for the Interstate Natural Gas Association of American (INGAA) and INGAA Foundation, along with the Canadian Energy Pipeline Association (CEPA) and the CEPA Foundation, voted to endorse a program tailored to certify pipeline inspectors conducting work for their member companie..
Decision Time for California Governor's Big Water Project
CLARKSBURG, Calif. (AP) — Atop a dirt levee his great-grandfather built in the 1800s to hold back California’s mightiest river, Northern California farmer Russell van Loben Sels looks out over the site of a new water project, one that would be the state’s most ambitious in a half-century. Promoted ..
Iowa Regulators Approve Bakken Pipeline Permit
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The last state permit needed for a pipeline that will carry a half-million barrels of crude oil daily from North Dakota to Illinois was approved Thursday by Iowa utilities regulators, who also gave the Texas-based company authority to use eminent domain for land that property..
Companies Pioneer Pipeline Safety Leadership Program Focused On Accountability, Culture
Caterpillar, in collaboration with PipeLine Machinery International, Inc. (PLM) and an assembly of industry-leading companies, announces the Pipeline Safety Leadership Program, a first-of-its-kind training course specifically targeting pipeliners. The program aims to support the industry as it shift..
Minor Pipeline Provision In House Energy Bill
Federal agencies will have less of a chance to slow down applications for pipeline construction if the Senate passes the energy bill which cleared the House in December. The North American Energy Security and Infrastructure Act of 2015 (H.R. 8) passed the House by a vote of 249-174, which means it h..
Feds Funnel More Money to Eastern New Mexico Pipeline
CLOVIS, N.M. (AP) – The federal government is funneling another $2 million toward a pipeline project aimed at bringing billions of gallons of water a year to parts of eastern New Mexico. Members of the state’s congressional delegation announced the funding from the Bureau of Reclamation on Tuesday...
Plan Could Divert Funds to Help Fund Lake Powell Pipeline
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — A proposal in the Utah Legislature would greenlight the transfer of nearly $500 million dollars from transportation projects to water projects in a move that could funnel money to the proposed Lake Powell pipeline. The Utah Senate approved the measure on a 19-10 vote Friday, a..
Underground Construction Initiatives Highlight 2016 DC Docket
by Stephen Barlas Washington Editor Amendment Would Allow Tax-Exempt Bonds For WIFIA loans There are a couple of major underground construction initiatives circulating in Congress and regulatory agencies this year. But the prospect of an upcoming presidential election means that many bills, which ..
PLM’s 71H pipelayer
Pipeline Machinery Intl. 71H pipelayer has the support of Caterpillar®, the engineering expertise of Vanguard Equipment Inc. and Kress Corporation, thus the challenge was met to create a utility-capacity pipelayer in the Tier 4 Interim/EU Stage IIIB class, designed for lifting 60,000-lbs. and engine..
West Houston Water Pipeline Expansion
Between 2015 and 2019, the West Harris County Regional Water Authority (WHCRWA) plans to allocate $1.13 billion in bond funding toward the completion of West Houston water pipeline expansion projects, aimed to help the authority reach surface water usage goals mandated by the Harris-Galveston Subsid..
Michels Sets North American HDD Record
Michels Corporation utilized horizontal directional drilling (HDD) to drill beneath the Athabasca River in Canada and completed an industry milestone on Nov. 21. The 42-inch, 7,200-foot crossing was near Fort MacKay, about one-hour north of Fort McMurray, Alberta. The 1.36-mile installation is a new..
2016 North American Pipeline Outlook
Underground Construction’s 2016 survey figures of oil and gas pipelines construction indicates 34,027 miles of pipelines are currently planned and under construction in North America. Of these, 21,412 miles represent projects in the engineering and design phase while 12,615 miles are in various stag..
FERC's Policy On ‘Cumulative’ Impact Of Pipeline Projects Faces Tests
FERC’s Cumulative Impact Policy The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission issued its long-awaited decision clearing a Tennessee Gas Pipeline Co. project in Pennsylvania shale country after a federal court had forced the agency to revisit an environmental assessment FERC performed in 2012. The FERC ..
2015 International Pipeline Survey
Underground Construction, Pipeline & Gas Journal and Pipeline News’ 2015 international pipeline survey indicates 70,308 miles of pipeline are in various stages of construction or planned. Of these, 32,013 miles account for projects in the planning and engineering phase, while 38,295 miles are in var..
American Farm Bureau Federation backs more pipeline infrastructure
The American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) has recently urged the construction of more crude oil pipelines in order to improve train service for farmers. Farmers contend crude oil shipments displace resources formerly reserved for grains – additional pipelines will keep railways available for corn a..
Pipelines: Predicting The Unpredictable
by Robert Carpenter, Editor In Chief First, the bad news. It’s been about 17 months since oil and gas prices started their freefall. Prices for oil seem to have stabilized – for now – while natural gas remains in flux. But reports of dramatic oversupply, historic storage levels, poor international..
Roberts Pipeline Announces New President
Roberts Pipeline has named Robert (Rob) Lyons as company president. Lyons brings more than 30 years of senior management and operational experience from the oil and gas industry. He has held multiple executive positions within Quanta Services, experiencing success driven by development of strategic ..
Business Shorts - October 2015
LMK Technologies On August 24, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) ruled in favor of LMK Technologies, declining institution of inter parts reviews on two petitions filed by BLD Services. The decisions were issued in IPR2015-00723 (Paper 7) and IPR2015-00721 ..
Sideline Specialty Equipment Merges With Cross Country Pipeline Supply Company
Cross Country Pipeline Supply (Cross Country), a leading equipment and supplies provider to the domestic oil and gas pipeline construction industry, announced that it has acquired Sideline Specialty Equipment (Sideline). Through the acquisition of Sideline, Cross Country has entered the Canadian mar..
- Glenfarne Alaska LNG targets late-2026 construction start for 807-mile pipeline project
- U.S. water reuse boom to fuel $47 billion in infrastructure spending through 2035
- $2.3 billion approved to construct 236-mile Texas-to-Gulf gas pipeline
- Major water pipe break in Puerto Rico hits over 165,000 customers
- Potomac River Tunnel project enters construction phase beneath Washington, D.C.
- Pennsylvania American Water launches interactive map to identify, replace lead water service lines
- Trump's tariffs drive $33 million cost increase for Cincinnati sewer project
- Utah city launches historic $70 million tunnel project using box jacking under active rail line
- Tulsa residents warned after sewer lines damaged by boring work
- Fatal trench collapse halts sewer construction in Massachusetts; two workers hospitalized