JAIPUR, India - A massive fire raged on Oct. 30 at an oil depot in northern India more than 18 hours after it erupted, with four people confirmed dead and around 135 injured.
The blaze, caused by a suspected oil pipeline leak, broke out at around 7:30 p.m. Oct. 29 at the Indian Oil Corp. (IOC) facility on the outskirts of Jaipur in the desert state of Rajasthan.
B.L. Soni, a senior Jaipur police official, confirmed four deaths and 135 injured. "Two of them are critical," he said.
Between three and six employees of the state-run facility were missing, according to the police and the Indian oil ministry.
IOC officials estimated the cost of the fire at up to 1.5 billion rupees ($30 million).
The Press Trust of India reported six people were killed and 150 injured in the fire, which engulfed five oil storage units at the depot covering an area of several square kilometers.
Friday, October 30, 2009
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Port Dolphin gets license OK for Florida deepwater LNG facility
MANATEE, Fla. - Port Dolphin’s proposal to build a deepwater port off Anna Maria Island inched closer to licensing on Oct. 26.
That’s when a record of decision was signed for Port Dolphin Energy LLC’s application for a license to build a deepwater liquefied natural gas port about 28 miles off Anna Maria Island.
The regulatory requirement awarded to Port Dolphin’s proposal clears the company to receive a project license from the U.S. Maritime Administration.
“We are pleased at the progress we have made in meeting the regulatory requirements for our new deepwater (liquefied natural gas) port,” said Sveinung Stohle, president and chief executive officer of Hoegh LNG, Port Dolphin’s parent company.
“The port will be an important new source of much-needed natural gas for the state of Florida.”
The offshore deepwater port will be a platform where ships can unload liquefied natural gas that will be shipped through a pipeline that comes ashore at Port Manatee.
That’s when a record of decision was signed for Port Dolphin Energy LLC’s application for a license to build a deepwater liquefied natural gas port about 28 miles off Anna Maria Island.
The regulatory requirement awarded to Port Dolphin’s proposal clears the company to receive a project license from the U.S. Maritime Administration.
“We are pleased at the progress we have made in meeting the regulatory requirements for our new deepwater (liquefied natural gas) port,” said Sveinung Stohle, president and chief executive officer of Hoegh LNG, Port Dolphin’s parent company.
“The port will be an important new source of much-needed natural gas for the state of Florida.”
The offshore deepwater port will be a platform where ships can unload liquefied natural gas that will be shipped through a pipeline that comes ashore at Port Manatee.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Saudi Arabia: Construction of Karan gas project now under way
The first phase of construction of Saudi Aramco’s Karan gas program is now under way on the four main contract packages that were awarded in March.
The chief contractors involved in the program are J. Ray McDermott, Hyundai Engineering and Construction Co., Petrofac, and GS Engineering.
Last month, the team responsible for the offshore platforms and subsea pipeline package started fabrication of 30,000 metric tons (33,069 tons) of steel for 38 structures. Work on the three onshore packages, the Karan gas facilities, pipeline utilities and co-generation, and the Karan Sulfur recovery and Manifa gas facilities is also under way at Khursaniyah.
Karan is the company’s first non-associated offshore gas field development. Offshore facilities will comprise four production platforms connected to a main tie-in platform that will feed sour gas through a 68.3-mile subsea pipeline to the processing complex in Khursaniyah.
On arrival, the gas will be processed through three trains, each with a capacity of 600 MMcf/d, with facilities for gas sweetening, acid-gas enrichment, dehydration and propane refrigeration.
Saudi Aramco aims to produce 450 MMcf/d by mid-2011.
The chief contractors involved in the program are J. Ray McDermott, Hyundai Engineering and Construction Co., Petrofac, and GS Engineering.
Last month, the team responsible for the offshore platforms and subsea pipeline package started fabrication of 30,000 metric tons (33,069 tons) of steel for 38 structures. Work on the three onshore packages, the Karan gas facilities, pipeline utilities and co-generation, and the Karan Sulfur recovery and Manifa gas facilities is also under way at Khursaniyah.
Karan is the company’s first non-associated offshore gas field development. Offshore facilities will comprise four production platforms connected to a main tie-in platform that will feed sour gas through a 68.3-mile subsea pipeline to the processing complex in Khursaniyah.
On arrival, the gas will be processed through three trains, each with a capacity of 600 MMcf/d, with facilities for gas sweetening, acid-gas enrichment, dehydration and propane refrigeration.
Saudi Aramco aims to produce 450 MMcf/d by mid-2011.
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Retired NTSB investigator Charles H. Batten dead at 72
Charles Hershel Batten, 72, died at his residence in the Lake of the Woods community, Locust Grove, Va., on Oct. 24, 2009.
Mr. Batten was born in Douglas, Ga., in 1937. He was a graduate of Georgia Tech with a B.S. in civil engineering, and a graduate of the University of Southern California with a Master of Science degree in safety systems.
Mr. Batten served in the United States Army Reserve as a sergeant first class. He retired from the Florida Public Service Commission, the National Transportation Safety Board and Batten Associates.
Mr. Batten is survived by his wife of 50 years, Joan Allen Batten; two sons, Brad Batten of Warrenton, Va., and Chuck Batten of Slidell, La.; a daughter, Jennifer Nagy of La Crosse, Wis.; and a brother, Jimmy Batten of Winter Garden, Fla.
A memorial service for Mr. Batten will be held at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 28, at The Lake of the Woods Church. The Rev. Tom Schafer will officiate.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Hospice of the Rapidan, Box 1715, Culpeper, Va. 22701, or The Lake of the Woods Church, One Church Lane, Locust Grove, Va. 22508.
Online condolences may be made to Johnsoncares .com.
Mr. Batten was born in Douglas, Ga., in 1937. He was a graduate of Georgia Tech with a B.S. in civil engineering, and a graduate of the University of Southern California with a Master of Science degree in safety systems.
Mr. Batten served in the United States Army Reserve as a sergeant first class. He retired from the Florida Public Service Commission, the National Transportation Safety Board and Batten Associates.
Mr. Batten is survived by his wife of 50 years, Joan Allen Batten; two sons, Brad Batten of Warrenton, Va., and Chuck Batten of Slidell, La.; a daughter, Jennifer Nagy of La Crosse, Wis.; and a brother, Jimmy Batten of Winter Garden, Fla.
A memorial service for Mr. Batten will be held at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 28, at The Lake of the Woods Church. The Rev. Tom Schafer will officiate.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Hospice of the Rapidan, Box 1715, Culpeper, Va. 22701, or The Lake of the Woods Church, One Church Lane, Locust Grove, Va. 22508.
Online condolences may be made to Johnsoncares .com.
Monday, October 26, 2009
Enterprise and TEPPCO complete merger, announce changes
HOUSTON - Enterprise Products Partners L.P. and TEPPCO Partners, L.P. on Oct. 26 announced that the merger of the two partnerships has been completed. The merger agreement was approved by TEPPCO unitholders at a special meeting held Oct. 23 in Houston.
With an enterprise value of approximately $30 billion, 48,000 miles of pipelines and market capitalization of $18 billion, Enterprise is now the nation`s largest publicly traded partnership.
Some 97 percent of the TEPPCO units that voted were cast in favor of the merger and represented about 71 percent of TEPPCO`s total outstanding units. In addition, approximately 96 percent of the votes cast by Unaffiliated TEPPCO Unitholders approved the merger of the two partnerships.
Under the terms of the merger agreement, TEPPCO unitholders will receive 1.24 Enterprise common units for each TEPPCO unit owned at the effective time of the merger, which is expected to be completed Oct. 26, 2009.
As previously announced, Enterprise is offering to exchange TEPPCO senior and subordinated notes validly tendered for exchange, and not validly withdrawn, prior to their expiration date, for Enterprise notes. The exchange is scheduled to be completed at the close of business on Oct. 27. As of Oct. 23, $1.94 billion of the $2 billion aggregate principal amount of TEPPCO notes had been tendered for exchange.
With an enterprise value of approximately $30 billion, 48,000 miles of pipelines and market capitalization of $18 billion, Enterprise is now the nation`s largest publicly traded partnership.
Some 97 percent of the TEPPCO units that voted were cast in favor of the merger and represented about 71 percent of TEPPCO`s total outstanding units. In addition, approximately 96 percent of the votes cast by Unaffiliated TEPPCO Unitholders approved the merger of the two partnerships.
Under the terms of the merger agreement, TEPPCO unitholders will receive 1.24 Enterprise common units for each TEPPCO unit owned at the effective time of the merger, which is expected to be completed Oct. 26, 2009.
As previously announced, Enterprise is offering to exchange TEPPCO senior and subordinated notes validly tendered for exchange, and not validly withdrawn, prior to their expiration date, for Enterprise notes. The exchange is scheduled to be completed at the close of business on Oct. 27. As of Oct. 23, $1.94 billion of the $2 billion aggregate principal amount of TEPPCO notes had been tendered for exchange.
Friday, October 23, 2009
Fourth lawsuit filed against NorthWestern Energy over Montana gas explosion
BOZEMAN, Mont. - A fourth lawsuit has been filed against NorthWestern Energy, claiming the utility company is to blame for the March 5 explosion in downtown Bozeman that claimed one life and destroyed half a city block.
In his complaint, Rocky Mountain Rug Gallery owner Jalal Neishabouri accuses NorthWestern Energy and its gas system integrity manager Leonard Leveaux of negligence. The lawsuit is similar to others already filed in Gallatin County District Court.
Neishabouri moved to Bozeman in 1991 and has operated the Rocky Mountain Rug Gallery since that time, according to the lawsuit. Court papers state his inventory included 5,000 "high quality carpets, new antique and historical, many of which were damaged by smoke, water, glass or the foreseeable mishandling during efforts to rescue some of the carpets following the explosion and fire which is the subject of the suit."
The lawsuit claims the two-inch service line behind the Rocky Mountain Trails art gallery had become brittle and cracked, causing a large gas leak and subsequent explosion and that NorthWestern officials chose to ignore the dangerous conditions created by weakened thread joints in the pipe.
"The dangerous, brittle condition of the service line made it susceptible to fracture from common natural forces. Those forces and the susceptibility of embrittled pipe to fracture when exposed to those forces are well known and well understood in the gas distribution industry. The threaded connections between segments of pipeline are weak points which are prone to the initiation of cracks and failures," the lawsuit states.
Neishabouri's suit also says NorthWestern's inability to locate and shut off its own valves after the blast was a result of the company's negligent and reckless conduct.
In his complaint, Rocky Mountain Rug Gallery owner Jalal Neishabouri accuses NorthWestern Energy and its gas system integrity manager Leonard Leveaux of negligence. The lawsuit is similar to others already filed in Gallatin County District Court.
Neishabouri moved to Bozeman in 1991 and has operated the Rocky Mountain Rug Gallery since that time, according to the lawsuit. Court papers state his inventory included 5,000 "high quality carpets, new antique and historical, many of which were damaged by smoke, water, glass or the foreseeable mishandling during efforts to rescue some of the carpets following the explosion and fire which is the subject of the suit."
The lawsuit claims the two-inch service line behind the Rocky Mountain Trails art gallery had become brittle and cracked, causing a large gas leak and subsequent explosion and that NorthWestern officials chose to ignore the dangerous conditions created by weakened thread joints in the pipe.
"The dangerous, brittle condition of the service line made it susceptible to fracture from common natural forces. Those forces and the susceptibility of embrittled pipe to fracture when exposed to those forces are well known and well understood in the gas distribution industry. The threaded connections between segments of pipeline are weak points which are prone to the initiation of cracks and failures," the lawsuit states.
Neishabouri's suit also says NorthWestern's inability to locate and shut off its own valves after the blast was a result of the company's negligent and reckless conduct.
Thursday, October 22, 2009
More on New York MTBE case: ExxonMobil ordered to pay $105 million
NEW YORK - A federal jury in Manhattan, after an 11-week trial, has found ExxonMobil liable for contaminating New York City's groundwater with the gasoline additive methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE), and awarded the City of New York $105 million in damages.
The city sued ExxonMobil for the costs of removing MTBE from drinking water wells in southeast Queens. The jury found Exxon liable for product liability for failure to warn people about the dangerous nature of its product as well as trespass, public nuisance, and negligence.
The city presented evidence that ExxonMobil added MTBE to gasoline knowing that it would contaminate groundwater when the gasoline leaked and knowing that underground storage tanks at gas stations, many of which are owned by ExxonMobil, regularly leak.
The City also contended that ExxonMobil ignored warnings from its own scientists and engineers not to use MTBE in areas of the country, like Queens, that use groundwater for drinking water.
ExxonMobil failed to inform government agencies, gasoline station owners, water suppliers, and the public about the dangers from MTBE.
New York State banned MTBE in 2004, after the chemical had polluted groundwater drinking water supplies throughout the state. Some 20 other states have also banned MTBE.
The city sued ExxonMobil for the costs of removing MTBE from drinking water wells in southeast Queens. The jury found Exxon liable for product liability for failure to warn people about the dangerous nature of its product as well as trespass, public nuisance, and negligence.
The city presented evidence that ExxonMobil added MTBE to gasoline knowing that it would contaminate groundwater when the gasoline leaked and knowing that underground storage tanks at gas stations, many of which are owned by ExxonMobil, regularly leak.
The City also contended that ExxonMobil ignored warnings from its own scientists and engineers not to use MTBE in areas of the country, like Queens, that use groundwater for drinking water.
ExxonMobil failed to inform government agencies, gasoline station owners, water suppliers, and the public about the dangers from MTBE.
New York State banned MTBE in 2004, after the chemical had polluted groundwater drinking water supplies throughout the state. Some 20 other states have also banned MTBE.
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