A lack of new natural gas pipelines and the shifting nature of infrastructure policy are causes of concern for gas reliability, according to a panel of analysts speaking on the reliability risks of gas and electric power.
"There's growing demand from LNG and power generation, and growing peak day demand… but we aren't seeing any increases on pipeline capacity or storage capacity," Southern Gas director of gas supply Ken Yagelski said at the Midcontinent LDC Gas Forum in Chicago, Illinois.
Yagelski noted that while it may seem that pipeline capacity additions have grown at the same rate as peak day demand, a lot of this new capacity is "repurposed" old capacity that has been modified to deal with LNG, as there has not been any "meaningful pipeline mileage" added for years.
He cited the difficulty in obtaining permits for new infrastructure as a reason pipeline mileage in the US has stayed steady for the past few years.
Brian Fitzpatrick, a Principal Fuel Supply Strategist at PJM Interconnection, also cited infrastructure difficulties as a factor posing a "risk" for gas reliability.
As state and policy objectives on infrastructure, energy and climate are highly variable, Fitzpatrick noted the difficulty of knowing whether necessary gas infrastructure will be approved, or if strict environmental goals will hinder planned projects.
The Midcontinent LDC Gas Forum in Chicago, Illinois will carry on through Wednesday.
