On February 14, 2024, Marcellus Drilling News reported National Fuel Gas Company, parent to Seneca Resources drilling and NFG Midstream pipeline companies, is suing a former employee and several vendors for buying and installing counterfeit parts at several compressor stations.”

“One such part caused the temporary shutdown at one compressor station in New York’s Southern Tier when the part failed to work correctly.”

[Pennsylvania’s Public Utility Commission  Safety Division is not aware of any PUC jurisdictional compressor stations with the NFG companies.

[The PUC does not have jurisdiction over natural gas gathering pipelines and their associated compressor stations as well as well pad compressor stations.

[DEP issues air quality permits for compressor stations, well pad air pollution sources and other natural gas infrastructure emissions.]

“Rockwell Automation reviewed the parts in question and told National Fuel that the parts were either old, used, modified, or completely fabricated, a finding that could “pose safety, security, and reliability risks to your operations.” Not good.”

“NFG’s former senior manager in the purchasing department purchased faulty parts from two companies: Ribet Supply and JPKM Supply Solutions.

“The senior purchasing manager’s wife heads up JPKM, a detail he neglected to share with NFG.

“The purchasing manager was using his position to enrich himself, in other words. And doing so by buying substandard parts. At least, that’s the allegation by NFG.

“The fired senior manager is counter-suing and claims NFG’s charges are false and misleading.”

Click Here to read the Marcellus Drilling News article. [PDF of article]

Marcellus Drilling News noted the Buffalo News has reported extensively on the lawsuit and counterfeit parts--

-- Buffalo News: National Fuel Gas Claims Vendor Solid It Counterfeit Parts That Caused Compressor Station To Shut Down When They Failed

-- Buffalo News: National Fuel Gas Alleges Ex-Employee Led Purchasing Scheme That Defrauded Company Of At Least $1 Million

(Map: National Fuel Gas service and facility area.)

PA Oil & Gas Industry Public Notice Dashboards:

-- PA Oil & Gas Weekly Compliance Dashboard - Feb. 10 to 16 - 31 More Conventional Abandoned Well NOVs - 103 For Year; Pipeline Land Slips; Water Supply, Stray Gas Complaints [PaEN]

-- PA Oil & Gas Industrial Facilities: Permit Notices, Opportunities To Comment - February 17 [PaEN]

-- DEP Approves PennEnergy Resources 1.5 Million Gallon/Day Water Withdrawal For Shale Gas Drilling From Big Sewickley Creek In Beaver County  [PaEN] 

-- DEP Sets March 20 Hearing [If Requested] On Air Quality Permit Change For The Eastern Gas Transmission Punxsutawney Compressor Station In Jefferson County  [PaEN]

-- DEP Invites Comments On Mariner East II Natural Gas Liquids Pipeline Chapter 102 Permit Amendment For An Area In West Goshen Twp., Chester County  [PaEN]

-- DEP Invites Comments On MarkWest Project To Expose 4 Natural Gas Pipelines For 5,500+ Feet Ahead Of Longwall Mining In Donegal Twp., Washington County  [PaEN]

-- Public Comments Invited On State Air Quality Plan Amendment For PEI Power Corp Natural Gas-fired Power Plant In Lackawanna County  [PaEN]

-- PUC Invites Comments On Williams Natural Gas Pipeline Co. Proposal To Construct 2 Solar Energy Facilities To Provide Electricity To Compressor Stations In Columbia, Wyoming Counties  [PaEN]

-- DEP Posted 109 Pages Of Permit-Related Notices In February 17 PA Bulletin  [PaEN] 

-- PUC Now Accepting Comments On $250,000 Penalty Settlement With Peoples Gas On Natural Gas Over-Pressurization Incident In Indiana County  [PaEN]

-- PUC Public Hearings In Early March For Proposed $156 Million Peoples Natural Gas Rate Increase

Related Articles - Gas:

-- DEP Approves PennEnergy Resources 1.5 Million Gallon/Day Water Withdrawal For Shale Gas Drilling From Big Sewickley Creek In Beaver County; Citizens Group Opposes DEP Decision  [PaEN] 

-- Susquehanna River Basin Commission March 14 Meeting On Rulemakings, Water Withdrawal Requests, Including 8 Related To Shale Gas Development; And On Cooperative Fish Nursery General Permit  [PaEN]

-- PA Taxpayers To Give $130.9 Million In Tax Credits To Subsidize Shell Petrochemical Plant In Beaver County; Total Expected To Be $1.17 Billion Thru 2042; No Regard For Environmental Compliance Record  [PaEN]

-- Ohio River Basin Alliance, National Wildlife Federation Report Identifies Community Concerns, Priorities For Local Waters In Ohio River Watershed [Road-Dumping Drilling Wastewater]  [PaEN]

-- Marcellus Drilling News: National Fuel Gas Lawsuit Alleges Fraud, Counterfeit Parts Used At Natural Gas Compressor Stations  [PaEN]

-- Natural Gas Intelligence: 76% Increase In LNG Natural Gas Export Capacity Already Under Construction; US Group Fears Buildout Will Hurt American Businesses Urge ‘US Consumers First’ Policy  [PaEN]

-- Bloomberg TV: Canada’s Energy Minister: Period Of Using Natural Gas As Transition Fuel Should Be Short; Gas Should Not Replace Renewables; Canada Has Adopted Controls On LNG Exports The US Has Not  [PaEN]

-- Penn State Extension Energy Essentials: Unraveling Hydrogen Rainbow; Renewable Energy On The Farm; Carbon Markets, Climate-Smart Forestry  [PaEN]

-- Penn State Extension March 14 Webinar On Oil & Gas Wastewater Management - Project PARETO  [PaEN]

NewsClips - Gas:

-- TribLive: Beaver County Man Sues Shell Petrochemical Plant, Claims Plant Spews Pollution

-- The Energy Age Blog: Resident Files Lawsuit Against Shell Petrochemical Plant, Claims Plant Spews Pollution

-- Beaver County Times: Shell CEO Puts Beaver County Petrochemical Plant Price Tag At $14 Billion

-- Post-Gazette - Anya Litvak: A Political Battle Brews Over Natural Gas Exports Over Impacts To Gas Prices, Climate, Demand For Gas

-- Reuters: European Union Says Biden’s Pause On Approvals Of New LNG Natural Gas Export Facilities Will Have No Effect On US LNG Supplies To Europe Over Next 2 or 3 Years  [LNG Exports Are Expected To Double By 2030 On Already-Approved Projects]

-- TribLive Guest Essay: A Fossil Fuel Export Economy Is Wrong For America - By Tyson Slocum, Public Citizen

-- Utility Dive: Federal Energy Regulatory Commission OKs Cold Weather Reliability Standards [Driven In Large Part By Natural Gas Infrastructure Failures In 2021]

-- Reuters: US Regulators To Review Power System Performance During Recent Winter Storms

-- Pittsburgh Business Times: Pittsburgh-Based EQT Could Curtail Some Natural Gas Production As Gas Prices Fade

-- Reuters: Pittsburgh-Based EQT Drilling Misses Profit Estimates On Lower Natural Gas Prices

-- Reuters: US Natural Gas Drillers Cut Spending, Reduce Activity Amid Price Crash

-- Natural Gas Intelligence: Global Natural Gas Prices Continue Freefall Amid Weak Demand, Warm Weather

-- PUC Public Hearings In Early March For Proposed $156 Million Peoples Natural Gas Rate Increase

-- Post-Gazette - Anya Litvak: Peoples’ Gas Proposed 7.6% to 21.4% Rate Hikes Will Get Their Time In The Court Of Public Opinion Next Month

-- TribLive Guest Essay: Record Oil And Gas Production Means Energy And Economic Security - By Independent Petroleum Association Of America

-- Yale360 - Jon Hurdle: How A Legal Clean Air Law Loophole Allows Natural Gas Leaks To Keep Flowing  [Aggregation Of Air Emissions Issue] 

-- Marcellus Drilling News: Is Coterra Energy Headed For Buyout And Split As Forbes Article Speculates?

-- Post-Gazette - Anya Litvak: Carbon Dioxide Storage Hub Landmen Seek 80,000 Acres Across Western PA, Ohio, WV

-- Marcellus Drilling News: NAPE Speakers Say Carbon Capture & Sequestration A Risky Business

-- Williamsport Sun Guest Essay: Carbon Capture And Storage Can Keep Rural Economies Strong - By Erick Coolidge, Fmr Tioga County Commissioner

-- The Energy Age Blog: Dangerous Workplaces - US Drilling, Fracking Operations - 1,566 Workers Have Died In US

-- Financial Times: Geologists Signal Start Of Hydrogen Energy ‘Gold Rush’

[Posted: February 15, 2024]

2/19/2024