THE MONTHLY MAGAZINE OF THE AMERICAN GAS …

AMERICANGAST H E M O N T H L Y M A G A Z I N E O F T H E A M E R I C A N G A S A S S O C I A T I O N AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2015

ENERGY EFFICIENCY STARTS HERE 28

SHIFTING SAFETY INTO HIGH GEAR 34

THE TALENT

POOLHOW CAN WE

MAKE SURE OUR FUTURE WORKFORCE

KEEPS UP WITH DEMAND?

Industry leading 2 week lead time

Made in the U.S.A.

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BelGas.net 800.727.5646

AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2015 AMERICAN GAS 1

COVER ILLUSTRATION BY ADAM NIKLEWICZ

AMERICAN GASVOLUME 97 NUMBER 7 AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2015

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AMERICANGASAMERICAN GAS

PIPELINESalmon Says 5

Digest 6 CNG powers a paper mill in New York; SoCalGas provides more sourcing options for customers; Vermont Gas Systems invests in biogas; and more.

Fresh Ideas 6New technologies are meeting the mass communication demand; and robotic cameras make cross bore detection easier and faster.

CHP 7A unique public/private partnership turns a landfill into a thriving farm.

Industry 8Drones go where utility crews can’t.

Research 8Study shows that automatic bill pay ups energy usage.

Pipelines 9Relocatable roping helps utilities track pipelines.

By the Numbers 12Americans are increasingly weather-ing storms by turning to natural gas residential standby generator sets for emergency power.

People 13

Places 14

STATE WATCHFueled Up 15

Connecticut 16A fascination with space helped build the continent’s largest fuel cell park.

California 16A pilot project is converting solar energy into natural gas.

Pennsylvania 18New rules would provide more information on natural gas suppliers.

Virginia 19A Virginia Tech class takes an unbiased look at the Mountain Valley Pipeline.

Minnesota 20Report says the state will meet new EPA rules with ease.

Texas 21Bill would help convert government fleets to natural gas.

BURNER TIPSOperations 34To engage the public about safety, utilities need to do what they do best, says Brennan Culver of the Culver Company. It’s all about driving continuous improvement and creating a positive customer experience.

DEPARTMENTSPresident’s Message 2

Jobs 32

Ad Index 35

Making a Difference 36A ConEd employee’s quick thinking saved lives when a fire broke out in his Queens neighborhood.

Cover Story 22The Talent PoolBY M. DIANE MCCORMICK As the natural gas industry continues to grow and thrive, how can we make sure our future workforce keeps up with demand?

Feature 28Energy Efficiency Starts Here

BY JULIA BAILEY

Natural gas energy efficiency programs provide plenty of support for customers in the communities they serve. The challenge is: How do we get the word out to truly engage these communities?

ONLINE EXCLUSIVE Natural Gas at PlayNatural gas is playing a role as a transportation fuel for everything from speedboats to snow- mobiles. Read it now at www.amgas.org.

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AMERICAN GAS AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 20152

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE

With more than a 100-year supply of clean natural gas in this country, it is hard not to talk about our bright future. Like all busi-nesses, natural gas utilities must plan many years ahead as they prepare to safely and reliably deliver

essential energy to homes and businesses under any circumstances. For example, each winter, the American Gas Association releases an analysis showing that preparation by our members helped over-come the challenges of vicious cold and record throughput to meet the needs of their customers at affordable prices.

Americans are also using more natural gas. Because of the incredible gains we have made in energy efficiency, the aver-age home uses 50 percent less natural gas than a home in 1970 despite homes today being 61 percent larger. But in addition to providing energy for homes and businesses, natural gas is used in vehicles, generates an increasing amount of electricity, sup-ports other forms of renewable energy and has caused incredible growth in the manufacturing industry as a feedstock. The foun-dation for this progress is the 2.4 million miles of natural gas pipelines that carry the product throughout the nation, but that intricate network relies on a highly trained workforce, which is another critical piece of our energy future.

I am happy to say that natural gas utilities are ahead of the curve in the preparation, planning and training of a next-gener-ation workforce. In AGA meetings and the pages of this maga-zine, we have engaged in a robust discussion about the expected retirement of much of the current workforce in the next decade. The agendas for many of our meetings include education on retaining valuable institutional knowledge and expertise while fostering productive collaboration in a workforce comprised of President and CEO, [email protected]

PLANNING FOR OUR FUTURE NATURAL GAS WORKFORCE multiple generations. We view this as a tremendous employ-ment opportunity.

To that end, AGA is participating in a new program called the Utility Industry Workforce Initiative to help connect military veterans with energy jobs. This partnership between key government agencies and leading energy trade associations is a multiyear effort dedicated to facilitating the recruitment, training and retention of exiting service members, veterans and their spouses in employment in the utility industry. There are approximately 200,000 veterans leaving the military each year. We are honored to assist these dedicated men and women with education and ongoing career development and to welcome them into our member companies and communities.

We are joined in this effort by the U.S. Departments of Energy, Defense, Labor and Veterans Affairs as well as the Edison Electric Institute, the Nuclear Energy Institute and the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association. This is in addition to our ongoing work with energy organizations in the Center for Energy Workforce Development and our own effort through the AGA Scholarship program, which is providing $1 million in funding for students pursuing a career in the natural gas industry.

In this issue of American Gas, we explore how some of our members are making sure that our future workforce keeps up with natural gas demand. As we make the case for natural gas as a foundation fuel, we can point not only to our role in revolu-tionizing the way our citizens use energy, but also to a resur-gence in all aspects of our economy. In communities through-out the nation, we are providing solutions for today’s needs and building toward the future.u

Natural gas utilities plan many years ahead as they prepare

to deliver essential energy to homes and businesses. So it’s no

surprise that utilities are ahead of the curve in the preparation,

planning and training of a next-generation workforce.

BY DAVE McCURDY



The American Gas Association, founded in 1918, represents more than 200 local energy companies that deliver clean natural gas throughout the United States. More than 72 million U.S. residential, commercial and industrial customers use natural gas; 94 percent—more than 68 million customers—receive their gas from AGA members. Natural gas meets almost one-fourth of the United States’ energy needs. Visit us at www.aga.org.

American Gas provides natural gas industry professionals with the information they need to enhance their effectiveness and that of their companies by publishing leading-edge reports on the industry and on American Gas Association activities that offer value to its members.American Gas (ISSN 1043-0652) is published monthly (except for bimonthly August/September and December/January issues) by the American Gas Association, 400 N. Capitol St., N.W., 4th Floor, Washington, D.C. 20001. Phone numbers: advertising, 717/430-2218; editorial, 717/430-2397; circulation, 866/512-3111; fax, 845/267-3478. Statements of fact and opinion herein are the responsibility of the authors and advertisers alone and do not imply an opinion or endorsement on the part of the American Gas Association.

ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTION: $59 domestic (United States), $110 foreign. Single copies, $7.50 each domestic, $12.50 each foreign. Periodicals postage paid at Washington, D.C. and at additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to American Gas, P.O. Box 317, Congers, NY 10920-0317.

REPRINTS: For high-quality reprints of articles to use in your education, promotional or sales efforts, including electronic reprints, contact Cindy Eyler at Sheridan Reprints at 717/632-3535, x8008 or [email protected]. ©2015 American Gas Association.

All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or part without written permission is prohibited.

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AMERICANGASTHE MONTHLY MAGAZINE OF THE AMERICAN GAS ASSOCIATION

www.aga.org • www.truebluenaturalgas.org • @AGA_naturalgas www.flickr.com/photos/agadotorg • www.facebook.com/naturalgas • www.aga.org, click on LinkedIn iconFOLLOW AGA ONLINE

OFFICERS

CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARDTerry D. McCallister, WGL Holdings Inc.

FIRST VICE CHAIRMANRalph A. LaRossa, Public Service Electric & Gas Co.

SECOND VICE CHAIRMANPierce H. Norton II, ONE Gas Inc.

IMMEDIATE PAST CHAIRMANGregg S. Kantor, NW Natural

PRESIDENT & CEODave McCurdy, American Gas Association

SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT & COOLori S. Traweek, American Gas Association

GENERAL COUNSELKevin B. Belford, American Gas Association

CORPORATE SECRETARYGary W. Gardner, American Gas Association

CHIEF FINANCIAL & ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICERKevin M. Hardardt, American Gas Association

DIRECTORS

Craig L. Adams, PECO Energy, an Exelon Co. William J. Akley, Eversource Energy

Dennis V. Arriola, Southern California Gas Co. Robert F. Beard, UGI Utilities Inc.

Lawrence T. Borgard, Integrys Energy Group Carl L. Chapman, Vectren Corp.

Kim R. Cocklin, Atmos Energy Corp. Laurence M. Downes, New Jersey Resources

Jeffrey E. DuBois, South Jersey Gas Co. Gordon L. Gillette, Tampa Electric and Peoples Gas

Joseph Hamrock, NiSource Inc. Kimberly J. Harris, Puget Sound Energy

John P. Hester, Southwest Gas Corp. Glenn R. Jennings, Delta Natural Gas Co. Inc.

Ronald W. Jibson, Questar Corp.Christopher P. Johns, Pacific Gas and Electric Co.

Marie E. Jordan, National Grid Patricia L. Kampling, Alliant Energy

Nicole A. Kivisto, Montana-Dakota Utilities Co.Steven E. Kurmas, DTE Energy Kent T. Larson, Xcel Energy Inc.

James P. Laurito, Central Hudson Gas & Electric Corp. Diane Leopold, Dominion Energy Richard J. Mark, Ameren Illinois

Kevin Marsh, SCANA Corp.

John McAvoy, Consolidated Edison Inc. Michael P. McMasters, Chesapeake Utilities Corp.

Scott L. Morris, Avista Corp. Michael Noone, SourceGas LLC

Morgan K. O’Brien, Peoples Natural Gas Scott M. Prochazka, CenterPoint Energy

Ian Robertson, Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. John G. Russell, CMS Energy Corp.

Suzanne Sitherwood, The Laclede Group Inc. Thomas E. Skains, Piedmont Natural Gas Co. Inc.

John W. Somerhalder II, AGL Resources Ronald J. Tanski, National Fuel Gas Co.

ADVISORY DIRECTORS

Lonnie E. Bellar, LG&E-KU, PPL Companies Doyle N. Beneby, CPS Energy

Julie A. Dill, Spectra Energy Corp. David R. Emery, Black Hills Corp.

William J. Fehrman, MidAmerican Energy Co.Rory Miller, Williams Companies Inc.

William C. Stephens, ATCO GasJames P. Torgerson, UIL Holdings Corp.Craig E. White, Philadelphia Gas Works

EDITORIAL DIRECTORTracy L. Burleson

[email protected]/824-7229

CONTRIBUTING EDITORSMichael MurrayJennifer O’Shea

CIRCULATION MANAGERSherri R. [email protected]

EXECUTIVE EDITORKelly Crane Winkler

SENIOR EDITORDanielle Wong Moores

MANAGING EDITORMelanie Bracey

EDITORIAL COORDINATORJordan Kell

CREATIVE DIRECTORSerena Spiezio

SUBSCRIBER CUSTOMER SERVICE866/512-3111

fax: 845/[email protected]

ADVERTISINGJustin Wolfe

The YGS Group717/430-2238

[email protected]


IN THIS SECTION

Robotic cameras ease cross bore detection 6

Drones go where utility crews can’t 8

Automatic bill pay has its pros and cons 8

SALMON SAYSNatural gas has a new role in the food chain

AMERICAN GAS

With the aquaculture industry seeking feed alternatives due to high fishmeal prices, limited supply and environmental concerns, the timing seems perfect for a new feed product produced from natural gas.

Enter Calysta Inc., a California-based company founded in 2011, which last year acquired the needed technology from BioProtein in Norway.

“This was a game changer for Calysta, because we brought our methane conversion technology to the nearly $400 billion nutri-tional market for fish and livestock feed and feed additives,” Alan Shaw, president and CEO of Calysta, told American Gas.

Calysta is developing FeedKind protein for two markets—FeedKind Aqua for the fish farm-ing and aquaculture market as well as a subse-

quent brand for the livestock market.The microbial protein is produced using a

natural fermentation of organisms that consume methane as their source of energy and carbon in soils worldwide, Shaw said. Calysta acceler-ates the growth by making sure they are kept in constant contact with methane and oxygen and then harvests, dries and pelletizes the biomass, which is blended by animal feed manufacturers into a species-specific whole feed.

Cost-effective sources of methane from natural gas will be of continuing importance to Calysta for its fishmeal protein production along with its use of methane as a biological feedstock to create essential building blocks for high-value industrial and consumer products, Shaw said. —Carolyn Kimmel

Natural gas is helping to produce a new feed product for farm-raised fish as well as livestock.

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Stay AlertNew technologies are meeting the mass communication demand

With instant information only a click away, today’s consumers have come to expect the same from their utility

companies, especially for service disruptions.While utilities have typically relied on phone

dialers to call customers or door-to-door visits by crew members to disseminate information, these options were time-consuming and far from optimal. Luckily for utility companies, technol-ogy is now providing mass communication tools that allow for the quick relay of information.

Wisconsin Public Service uses the ARCOS SIREN mass notification system to call its gas customers on their primary phone number if more than 25 customers experience a planned or unplanned interruption of service. The custom-ers receive an initial message informing them that their gas has been turned off and subsequent messages when repairs are done or informing them that service personnel will be around to do relights.

“If it’s at night, we also ask them to turn on their light if they want us to come then; otherwise we wait until morning. That prevents people from wondering why a service person is at their door,” Len M. Socha, senior outage management engineer at WPS, told American Gas. The service enhances customer safety and provides the information that customers want, he said.

The utility company also uses SIREN for internal communication with employees, and it can set up separate call lists to communicate with municipal authorities or first responders via phone, email or text messaging, Socha said.

Ameren Corp., which has about 900,000 natural gas customers and 2.4 million electric customers in Illinois and Missouri, uses a mass notification service provided by California-based Rapid Notify. The company relies on prewrit-ten, preapproved alert messages that include fill-in-the-blank areas for details of specific incidents. If an event occurs, alert messages can be recorded and sent as soon as possible.

“Our service is Web-based and fully hosted, so there is no requirement for [customers] to

purchase any special hardware or software to use our service,” Rapid Notify President Steve Sipe told American Gas.

F R E S H I D E A S

Crossed LinesRobotic cameras make cross bore detection easier and faster

Sewer line inspections for cross bores in Pennsylvania are getting a boost from camera-equipped robots that are inserted into the

line and drive up the sewer to confirm there’s no intersection between gas and sewer lines.

“This noninvasive video inspection process does not cause any interruption to service and, except in limited instances, doesn’t require any access to home or property,” said Russell Bedell, manager of communications and community relations for Columbia Gas of Pennsylvania & Maryland. “Prior to the development of this new technology, small sections of mains or laterals could have been viewed using a push camera, but that technology is more time intensive and more limited in its capability.”

Using information collected by the robot’s camera, which can also be directed down lateral sewer lines, the gas company can create a data map of the underground world that it then shares with the municipalities it serves. The result: A safer community.

Many utilities use trenchless technology con-struction methods to install underground lines with minimal excavation. Prior to any construc-tion, utilities and contractors are required to call 811 and request the marking of utility lines in the area; however, sewer lines are sometimes not marked or are marked incorrectly, leaving the potential for natural gas lines to be bored through the sewer lines, Bedell said.

These cross bores can go undetected for years. If a sewer backup develops, a plumber might use a mechanical rotary device to remove the blockage, thereby damaging the utility line and creating an unsafe situation by allowing natural gas to migrate into homes and buildings, he said.

In an effort to be proactive, Columbia Gas Co. began its sewer line inspection program in

The International Paper Co. mill in Ticonderoga, New York, has started receiving compressed natu-ral gas from NG Advantage via tractor-trailers in what the energy company calls a “virtual pipeline.” The CNG is replacing 60 percent of the paper mill’s current fuel, about 32,000 gallons of oil a day. The transition to CNG from oil saves money and has environmental benefits. “It’s an opportunity for us to move toward cleaner fuel with much less of an environmental footprint,” Donna Wadsworth, International Paper’s communications manager, told the Rutland Herald. “We’re seeing the ability to utilize natural gas as a step forward for the mill.”

The big brown trucks just got a little greener. UPS announced its intention to transition to renewable natural gas for its delivery vehicles, with the goal of driving 1 billion miles on the fuel by 2017. The delivery company is partnering with Clean Energy Fuels Corp. for its supply, currently utilizing fueling stations in central and southern Califor-nia. “RNG is critical to our effort to minimize UPS’ environmental impact while meeting the growing demand for our services,” said Mitch Nichols, UPS senior vice president of transportation and engineering. UPS already has a substantial place in the natural gas and alternative fuel vehicle market and with this partnership becomes the largest user of RNG in the shipping industry.

Mexico’s increasing industrial and power demands present an export opportunity for U.S. natural gas suppliers, and

AMERICAN GASD I G E S T


2013 and, thus far, has performed inspections in 16 municipalities in Pennsylvania, Bedell said.

“This technology to inspect sewer lines for cross bores has been used in other states, but in Pennsylvania, Columbia Gas is an industry leader. In fact, we have been assisting other companies with their cross bore investigation programs throughout the state,” Bedell told American Gas.

C H P

Trash to TreasureA unique public/private partnership has transformed a landfill into a thriving farm

It’s repurposing at its best in Keene, New Hamp-shire, where a closed landfill has become the site of a greenhouse and aquaculture system that

could produce a half-million pounds of herbs and lettuce and 66,000 pounds of live tilapia annually. The partnership between the Keene city govern-ment and the Local Farms Project will ultimately mean residents will have year-round access to fresh local produce and fish.

The innovative idea relies on burning methane released by the city’s landfill to provide the heating and power supply for the greenhouse. An on-site combined heat and power plant will produce 750 megawatt hours of energy annually, which will be divided between the greenhouse and the city’s re-cycling center. The project is expected to result in about 7,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide offset each year, according to a story from Environment & Energy Publishing.

The impressive conservation efforts don’t end there. The Keene Energy & Agriculture Project is also expected to recycle almost all of its water, fertilize its crops with waste from the aqua-culture system and employ a water catchment system on the greenhouse roof so the facility can

Mexican government reforms are allowing these partnerships for the first time in more than 50 years. By 2020, the expectation is for Mexico to be importing 13 percent of U.S. gas production, up to 10 billion cubic feet per day. The ICIS Mexico Energy Report is a new resource for sup-pliers interested in opportunities in the region. It is the first English-language report on the emerging market, and updates to the report are delivered biweekly.

Southern California Gas Co., a Sempra Energy company, is proposing an upgrade of its pipeline to provide more sourcing options for natural gas customers in Southern Califor-nia and to even out the pricing of natural gas between northern and southern service areas. The proj-ect would create a second link in the current pipeline, which is also accessed by San Diego Gas & Electric Co., another service provider for Southern California residents. The proposal includes a revamp of the Adelanto compres-sor station, which is where the proposed link would begin. The proposed pipeline comes on the heels of closing the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station in San Diego and is slated to be operational by 2019, pending approval by the California Public Utilities Commission.

Florida continues to expand the state’s compressed natural gas offerings, with TECO Peoples Gas constructing and main-taining a natural gas fuel-ing station for the Orlando area. The station will provide natural gas for the city’s garbage trucks, with customers paying through monthly utility billing.

D I G E S T

Continued on page 8

A half-million pounds of lettuce and herbs could be produced through the Local Farms Project, a unique greenhouse program that relies on natural gas.

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AMERICAN GASoverall employee and public safety, and locate the cause of power outages faster.”

Last year, the utility was given FAA approval to fly a small drone for research development and flight crew training in a sparsely populated airspace in eastern San Diego County. While much of SDG&E’s initial testing has been on electrical lines, spokesperson Allison Zaragoza said the drones will be used in natural gas territory to detect visible or exposed pipelines where soil has been moved or dead vegetation near pipelines that would suggest pipeline damage.

The drones, which measure 16 inches in diameter and weigh less than a pound, can cover areas that are difficult to reach for utility crews. Equipped with a camera to inspect utility equipment, the drones can relay live images to a controller and alert the company if repairs are needed, according to SDG&E.

Company officials said they plan to use unmanned aircraft in several situations. In addi-tion to locating the cause of power outages and possible gas line deficiencies, the drones improve situational awareness during emergencies through monitoring of fires and will achieve cost savings, noise reduction and environmental protection by reducing the use of helicopters and other heavy machinery, they said.

R E S E A R C H

Out of Sight, Out of MindStudy shows that automatic bill pay ups energy usage

Maybe it’s because the monthly payment is manageable or because energy use isn’t at the top of the average con-

sumer’s mind, but whatever the reason, a new study shows that people who take advantage of automatic bill paying are using more energy than those who get billed monthly for the amount they actually use.

After studying 16 years’ worth of billing records from a South Carolina utility, Steve Sexton, assistant professor of public policy and economics at Duke University’s Sanford School of Public Policy, found that residential customers on automatic bill pay used 4 to 6 percent more energy

D I G E S T

collect and store rainwater, according to Donald McCormick, president of the Local Farms Project, which will manage operations at the greenhouse and lease the land from the city.

In addition to being environmentally friendly, the project will provide fresher food to local residents by selling its produce in grocery stores within a 50-mile radius, McCormick told E&E. And it is expected to create almost 30 ag-ricultural jobs in Keene that will include health care and paid vacation.

Project coordinators are mindful that the methane from the closed landfill could last only about a decade, so they hope to set aside enough funds to develop energy from an alternative source such as an anaerobic digester or solar panels installed on the landfill, Duncan Watson, the assistant public works director for Keene, told E&E.

The successful KEAP proposal and concept design was a collaboration in 2014 between Mc-Cormick and ARExA, a New York City-based research and design firm. Funding for the project is provided by local investors, the city of Keene, and state and federal grant money.

I N D U S T R Y

A Great ViewDrones can go where utility crews can’t

Utilities are getting help from drones in their efforts to survey natural gas pipelines and power lines for safety. The

Federal Aviation Administration recently gave Sempra Energy’s San Diego Gas & Electric Co. approval to use the unmanned aircraft, joining Southern Co. in Atlanta and Commonwealth Edison Co. in Chicago.

“The utility industry is rapidly changing, and this new FAA approval is another milestone that will improve the way SDG&E conducts its operations,” John Sowers, SDG&E’s vice presi-dent of electric distribution operations, said in a news release. “The new UAS technology will en-able us to improve response times to emergency situations, inspect our electric and gas facilities in remote areas that are otherwise difficult to access, reduce the use of manned helicopters, enhance

Continued from page 7The station is expected to be op-erational by October and is one of more than 30 Peoples Gas CNG stations in its service area, which includes public facilities at Tampa International Airport and Port Tampa Bay. According to a statement by Peoples Gas, Florida is one of the fastest-growing compressed natural gas markets in the U.S.

Vermont Gas Systems Inc. is standing behind a project in the Green Mountain State to provide biogas developed from organic waste and cow manure. “The Lincoln Natural Gas Project is a great example of preventing and reducing waste by cre-ating a renewable energy product,” said Don Rendall, Vermont Gas president and CEO. “A project like this supports Vermont agriculture, reduces net carbon emissions that affect the cli-mate and provides customers with the renewable energy choice.” The natural gas utility plans to construct the distribution pipeline, which will connect the communi-ties of Salisbury and Middlebury, and is slated to purchase up to 25 percent of the output.

The world’s first demonstra-tion plant that produces ethylene from natural gas through a process called oxida-tive coupling of methane is now operational in La Porte, Texas. Siluria Technologies Inc. owns the plant, and the success of this demonstration has led Siluria to plan fully functional plants to develop the innovative product by 2018. “This revolutionary breakthrough has the poten-tial to shift the foundation of the hydrocarbon economy by using abundant natural gas to


than those who did not and commercial custom-ers used 8 percent more. His study was published recently in The Review of Economics and Statistics.

“If you extrapolate the results to the nation, that’s an increased power consumption of 15.8 billion kilowatt hours—or the annual electricity use of 1.5 million typical homes,” he said. “That could really offset anything utilities are doing to encourage customers to conserve.”

Although the study focused on electric utilities, there are takeaways for local distribu-tion companies. For example, he said, mailers comparing customers’ usage with their neighbors’ typically cost about $1 apiece and yield only a 1 to 2 percent reduction in consumption. The energy increase caused by automatic bill payment more than negates that reduction, Sexton told American Gas.

Another eye-opening finding from the study: While automatic bill pay is thought to help low-income families by spreading the cost of peak de-mand over the year, it is actually costing them more because they end up using 7 percent more energy.

Sexton said one solution might be to require the consumer to open an email, click to a website or read a text message at least monthly for a transaction to be processed. This would negate

the assurance of a monthly payment without the customer having to do anything, but it might be a worthwhile compromise, he said.

Utilities also might have to face a simple fact that’s not easy to overcome: Attention is a scarce resource and most people already have too many things on their minds, Sexton said. “I think these results are cautionary to utilities that are invest-ing tens of billions of dollars to install smart meter technology to help consumers achieve conservation usage,” he said. “It may just be that they are rationally inattentive to utility bills.”

P I P E L I N E S

Lost and FoundRelocatable roping helps utilities track pipelines

With an eye on the millions of dollars spent on locating plastic pipes thanks to tracer wires that have aged, cor-

roded or been severed, NiSource Inc.’s Dan Cote is excited about a new path-marking technology

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produce high-value chemicals and fuels,” said Ed Dineen, Siluria’s CEO. Ethylene is an important component of commodity fuels, chemicals and plastics.

In what is surely a response to the everlasting winter in New England this past year, Distri-gas of Massachusetts LLC will partner with local distribution companies to deliver 9.5 Bcf of liquefied natural gas to the region in the upcoming season. The agreement will provide deliveries to consumers from 2016 through 2024, with additional LNG to be stored in New England storage facilities during the off-season. “The long-term nature of the deal shows significant foresight … as it will provide greater certainty around [the] natural gas supply, which continues to be more and more important to the region,” said GDF SUEZ Gas CEO Frank Katu-lak, whose company will supply the natural gas.

Summit Natural Gas of Maine is expanding educa-tion efforts to its Maine cus-tomers. A survey in the spring of 2014 reached out to 400 homes in the Augusta-Waterville area and demonstrated that some resi-dents have little knowledge of the benefits provided by natural gas, so the company is pushing out educational campaigns through various media outlets including print, radio, TV and online, which are set to run through 2017. The energy company is putting a large part of its budget into the edu-cational efforts and has recently asked the Maine PUC to approve a bill-based repayment process. If approved, repayment would take effect starting in 2022. Continued on page 10

Contractors use 3M™ Electronic Marker System Rope 7000 series to mark underground plastic pipe as it is installed via horizontal drilling. The rope is designed for horizontal drilling as well as direct bury applications.

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AMERICAN GAS

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Consumers Energy recently broke ground on a $165 million project to upgrade the St. Clair Compressor Station outside Detroit. The redevelopment will employ 140 skilled contractors through completion in 2017. The improvements stand to increase the reliability of the compressor station for Consumers’ 1.7 mil-lion natural gas customers in the area as well as increase storage capacity. The facility currently stores natural gas after the pressurization process, which includes a cleaning process to remove liquids and dirt to ready it for pipeline transportation.

The location system, which does not require a power source, identifies underground plastic pipes without installing access points.

Impressed with its test run, Columbia Gas plans to use it this year in all new and replacement con-struction and installation in its northern Virginia territory with the hope of eventually deploying it across all NiSource territory, Cote said.

“This is absolutely the best technology that I have seen come along to give us that 100-year solution,” he said.

The EMS Rope, which became available in June, will continue to transmit a signal even when cut. The coiled copper wire is encapsulated and goes into the ground with no maintenance work needed, Scott said.

“It is designed to last the lifetime of the gas facility,” 3M’s Scott told American Gas. Especially important to utilities, the nylon roping is durable and may be used in challenging applications such as horizontal directional drilling.

that promises better results.“We are installing facilities to last more than

100 years, but the technology we’ve used to locate those facilities is designed to last half that time,” said Cote, vice president of pipeline safety and com-pliance. “Do we keep doing the same thing, hoping for a different result, or do we find a new technol-ogy that doesn’t require a transmitter and receiver? In my mind, 3M has come up with a breakthrough technology that NiSource is very interested in.”

The industry has historically used a tracer wire that runs next to or just above the plastic pipe; however, the problem is that it can be cut or nicked, often by a third party, making it unlocatable, said Ed Scott, business development manager of 3M Electrical Markets Division. Columbia Gas of Virginia, a subsidiary of NiSource, last year piloted 3M’s new Electronic Marker System Rope 7000 series, a path-marking technology that offers more accurate tracking of underground plastic pipe and fiber optic conduit.

Continued from page 9

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BLEED:PUBS:

NOTES:

CD: AD: CW: CM: AB: AP: PM: PR: DA: QC:

GustavoSsDanielPaMatthewDsMaryAnneKnEmilyHrDuaneBs EthelJsCamilleJnJodyMnDarrylTt

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STEADY GROWTH FOR NATURAL GAS STANDBY GENERATORS

Annual sales of residential natural gas standby generators have climbed steadily from 94,000 in 2010 to 110,000 in 2014, a growth of about 4 percent a year, according to growth consulting firm Frost & Sullivan. That same growth is expected to continue through 2020. “Natural gas generators are gaining momentum, with residential end users as the main adopters,” Frost & Sullivan Research Manager Lucrecia Gomez said. “The U.S. gas standby generator market is one of the fastest-grow-ing markets among developed nations.”

POWERING THROUGH THE STORM

Standby generators are rated by kilowatts, a measure of the machine’s strength and endurance. Most average single-family homes can rely on a system that’s 30kW or less, a trend that’s expected to continue, even as more consumers invest in generator sets. ”The demand for natural gas gensets is expected to increase consistently in the U.S.,” Frost & Sullivan’s Gomez said. UN

ITS (%

)

UNITS

GROW

TH R

ATE (

%)

2015 2020

55.9%

37.6%

6.5%

56.1%

37.5%

6.4%

60–150kW 30–60kW < 30kW

0

204060

2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020

80100120140160

.50

1.01.52.02.53.03.54.04.5

A STORM SURGE HITS THE U.S.

NUMB

ER O

F OUT

AGES

30

60

90

120

150

1984 1988 1992 1996 2000 2004 2008 2012

Storms and severe weather

Cold weather and ice storms

Hurricanes and tropical storms

Tornadoes

Extreme heat and wildfires

Some of the increase in major power outages in Climate Central’s 28-year analysis was driven by improved reporting. Yet even since 2003, after stricter reporting requirements were widely implement-ed, the average annual number of weather-related power outages doubled and accounted for 80 percent of all major outages. Climate Central, an independent organization of scientists and journalists, estimates that between 300 million and 500 million people in the U.S. have been affected by outages since 2003.

Sources: Climate Central; find the report at: http://assets.climatecentral.org/pdfs/PowerOutages.pdf. “Generators Outlook, June 2015” by Frost & Sullivan.

BY THE NUMBERSMajor power outages caused by severe weather increased tenfold from 1984 to 2012. In response, Americans are increas-ingly weathering the storms by turning to natural gas residential standby generators for emergency power.


PEOPLE

Heine

Carpenter

Manly

Johns

Reese

Trent

AMERICAN GASNational Fuel Gas Co. has announced that Bruce D. Heine has been promoted to senior vice president. He will be responsible for National Fuel Resources Inc., the energy marketing segment of the company, which is located in New York and Pennsylvania. Heine joined National Fuel in 1981.

Christopher P. Johns, president of Pacific Gas and Electric Co. and a member of the utility’s board of directors, will retire at the end of 2015. Johns joined PG&E in 1996 as vice president and controller and was named president in 2009. Johns is a member of the Executive Committee for the American Gas Association and is chair of the American Gas Foundation.

Piedmont Natural Gas has appointed Bruce Barkley to the position of vice president of regulato-ry affairs, rates and gas cost accounting, effective Aug. 10. Prior to his appointment at Piedmont Natural Gas, Barkley served as Duke Energy’s manager of regulatory affairs. In addition, David Carpenter, currently vice president of regulatory affairs, has been named vice president of regulatory policy until his planned retirement on Dec. 31.

Andrew W. Evans has been appointed president and COO at AGL Resources Inc. Evans formerly was executive vice president and chief financial officer. John W. Somerhalder II will remain chairman and CEO. The company also appointed Elizabeth W. (Beth) Reese as executive vice president and chief financial officer. Reese formerly served as senior vice president of AGL Resources and president of Illinois-based Nicor Gas, the largest of AGL Resources’ seven natural gas distribution companies.

Consolidated Edison Inc. has announced that Tom Newell has retired and that Matt Ketschke has been named vice president of dis-tributed research integration and planning.

Marc Manly, executive vice president of Duke Energy Corp.’s commercial portfolio, and Keith Trent, executive vice president of grid solutions and president of Duke’s Midwest and Florida regions, have retired from the company. They both joined Duke in 2002.

Steven Bietz, president and CEO of MDU Resources Group Inc.’s pipeline and energy service business, has retired.

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AUGUST

11–13: AGA Gas Utility Operations Best Practices Roundtable: Contractor Oversight, Minneapolis, MN. Contact Mike Bellman, 202/824-7183, [email protected]

17–19: AGA Accounting Principles Committee Meeting, Asheville, NC. Contact Joe Martin, 202/824-7255, [email protected]

24–26: AGA/EEI Utility Internal Auditor’s Training Course, Washington, DC. Contact Joe Martin, 202/824-7255, [email protected]

24–27: AGA/EEI Introduction and Advanced Public Utility Accounting Courses, Washington, DC. Contact Doug Allen, 202/824-7261, [email protected]

PLACESSEPTEMBER

16: Treasurer’s Workshop, New York, NY. Contact Liliana Fonnoll, 202/824-7021, [email protected]

16–18: Finance Committee Meeting, New York, NY. Contact Liliana Fonnoll, 202/824-7021, [email protected]

16–18: AGA/EEI Accounting for Energy Derivatives Work-shop and Seminar, Chicago, IL. Contact Joe Martin, 202/824-7255, [email protected]

17: Mini-Forum, New York, NY. Contact Liliana Fonnoll, 202/824-7021, [email protected]

23–24: AGA Work Forecasting and Field Resource Manage-ment Workshop, Washington, DC. Contact Betsy Tansey, 202/824-7339, [email protected]

28–October 2: AGA Opera-tions Section Fall Committee Meetings, Amelia Island, FL. Contact Debbie Ellis, 202/824-7338, [email protected]

OCTOBER

1: AGA Quality Management in Gas Operations Work-shop, Amelia Island, FL. Contact Betsy Tansey, 202/824-7339, [email protected]

12–14: AGA Gas Utility Oper-ations Roundtable: New Main and Services Construction and Replacement Main & Services Construction, Portland, OR. Con-tact Mike Bellman, 202/824-7183, [email protected]

21–22: Small Member Council Meeting, Winchester, KY. Contact Ysabel Suarez, 202/824-7024, [email protected]

NOVEMBER

4–6: AGA Operations Best Practices Roundtable: Collec-tion and Maintenance of As-Built Documentation, Plano, TX. Contact Mike Bellman, 202/824-7183, [email protected]

9–11: AGA/EEI Taxation Committee Meeting, Las Vegas, NV. Contact Joe Martin, 202/824-7255, [email protected]

15–18: AGA/EEI Fall Ac-counting Conference, AGA Accounting Services Commit-tee/EEI Corporate Account-ing Committee/EEI Prop-erty Accounting & Valuation Committee Meeting, Phoenix, AZ. Contact Doug Allen, 202/824-7261, [email protected]

16–17: AGA Executive Leadership Safety Summit, Washington, DC. Contact Andrew Lu, 202/824-7341, [email protected]

GAS TECHNOLOGY INSTITUTE EVENTS

SEP 28-OCT 2 Transmission Pipeline Design and Construction Practices. Chicago location to be determined. Susan Robertson, GTI, 847/768-0783; [email protected]; www.gastechnology.org/training

OCT 5-9 Gas Distribution Operations. Hampton Inn & Suites—Chicago Downtown, Chicago, IL. Susan Robertson, GTI, 847/768-0783; [email protected]; www.gastechnology.org/training

OCT 26-30 Pipeline Safety Regulatory Compliance. Hampton Inn & Suites—Chicago Downtown, Chicago, IL. Susan Robertson, GTI, 847/768-0783; [email protected]; www.gastechnology.org/training

TRAININGnatural gas industry

gastechnology.org/training


N E W Y O R K

C O N N E C T I C U T

C A L I F O R N I A

state watchP E N N S Y L V A N I A

V I R G I N I A

M I N N E S O T A

T E X A S

NEW YORK CITY—Soon, some food cart vendors in the Big Apple will have a safer, cleaner and quieter ride.

MOVE Systems is donating 500 eco-friendly vendor carts powered by compressed natural gas to replace propane-powered carts. The new carts will also allow vendors to have onboard refrigeration and a better cooking space, according to a MOVE press release.

The effort is partly sponsored by Clean Energy Fuels, a provider of natural gas for transportation in North America. “Everyone is a winner with the launch of these eco-friendly vehicles, especially New York-ers who love their food carts,” said Peter Grace, senior vice president of sales for Clean Energy Fuels.

New York has about 8,000 food carts serving about 1.2 million requests every day for everything from hot dogs to gourmet Korean fusion to fresh lobster. MOVE plans to keep the program going after the initial 500 carts are distributed.

The national environmental group Energy Vision estimates that each cart removes the pollution equivalent of 200 cars. —Monica von Dobeneck

NEW YORK

Fueled UpFood carts get an eco boost with natural gas

PHO

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OVE

SYS

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Chefs Scott Linquist and Richard Sterlin serve up Coyo tacos in

MOVE’s signature MRV100, fueled by natural gas.


CONNECT ICUT

Man on a MissionA mayor’s fascination with space helped build the continent’s largest fuel cell park

BRIDGEPORT—Mayor Bill Finch’s interest in hydrogen fuel cell technology is spurred by his fascination with manned missions to the moon.

While watching Apollo 13, the 1995 Ron Howard film about that moon mission, Finch wondered why fuel cells were not yet popular on Earth if they were being used in space a quarter-century ago.

He has become a leader in rectifying that by building North America’s largest fuel cell generating station, which uses natural gas to create the hydro-gen. The Dominion Bridgeport Fuel Cell produces enough clean energy to power 15,000 homes by using an electro-chemical process that efficiently converts natural gas into electricity. Fuel cells are quiet and virtually pollution free, and modern materials have made them more cost-effective.

The plant began operation in December 2013. FuelCell Energy Inc. operates and main-tains the facility, while Dominion sells the output

to Eversource Energy. The fuel cell plant has created jobs and spurred economic develop-ment, Finch said.

Along the way, it has earned him national recognition. In February, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency honored Finch with its Individual Leadership Award for his work in responding to climate change. Meanwhile, the U.S. Department of Energy recognized Bridgeport’s efforts to build the continent’s largest fuel cell station.

Finch spoke at the U.S. Conference of Mayors meeting about how mayors across the country—regardless of political affiliation—are leading the charge on climate change.

“You can call this movement whatever you want, but I call it getting off foreign oil, creating jobs that can’t be sent overseas, protecting our environment and eliminating waste,” he said.

Bridgeport’s fuel cell park prevents the emission of about 297 tons of smog-producing nitrogen oxide and more than 67,600 tons of carbon dioxide, according to the mayor’s office. That’s the equivalent of removing about 12,900 cars from the road. It also produces virtually no sulfur dioxide or particulate matter.

A February report by a group of New England energy companies calls on Connecticut to use fuel cell technology to power 175,000 homes by 2025.

“Bridgeport stands ready, willing and able to do more than we’ve already done to make sure the hydrogen economy of the future begins here in the city of Bridgeport,” Finch said. “Fuel cell technology creates jobs and creates energy, cleans our air and provides economical fuel for our families in Bridgeport.”

CAL I FORN IA

When the Sun ShinesA pilot project is converting solar energy into natural gas

LOS ANGELES—One problem with solar energy is figuring out cost-effective ways to store it when the sun isn’t shining.

Now, Southern California Gas Co. is launch-ing a pilot project with an unusual twist—turn-

state watch

The Apollo 13 mission inspired Bridgeport Mayor Bill Finch to focus on bringing fuel cell technology to Connecticut.


ing solar energy into easier-to-store natural gas. The utility is partnering with the U.S. Depart-ment of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory and the National Fuel Cell Research Center on the demonstration project.

According to a SoCalGas press release, the technology “could provide North America with a large-scale, cost-effective solution for storing excess energy produced from renewable sources.”

Commercial-scale wind power to gas sys-tems are already being used in Germany.

SoCalGas’ process will use the electricity from renewable sources to break down water into hydrogen and oxygen. The hydrogen can then be combined with carbon dioxide and converted into synthetic, renewable methane and stored to meet future energy needs.

Using the carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas linked to global warming, will give the process a negative carbon footprint. In addition, the cost

of converting solar to gas is less than 35 cents per kilowatt-hour, according to a SoCalGas analysis.

The system could allow natural gas utilities to use their existing pipelines as large storage units to deliver clean, renewable energy on de-mand, the company said. California is supposed to produce 33 percent of its electricity from renewable sources within five years, and Gov. Jerry Brown’s new energy goals call for increasing that to 50 percent by 2030.

While a lot of research has gone toward de-veloping more efficient batteries to store energy from renewables, batteries are expensive and have drawbacks.

“As the amount of power produced from renewable resources increases, storing it for later use is a worldwide challenge,” the press release says. “Batteries, a standard form of storage, require significant capital investment but have limited capacity and relatively short duration.”

Patrick Lee, senior vice president of customer service, innovation and busi-ness strategy at SoCalGas, said the system could solve a major energy challenge fac-ing the nation.

SoCalGas’ pilot project will convert solar energy to easier-to-store natural gas.

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“SoCalGas continually seeks innovation to benefit our customers and is excited to work with NREL and NFCRC to make this technology a reality in the U.S.,” he said.

P ENNSY LVAN IA

Supply and DemandNew rules would provide more information on natural gas suppliers

HARRISBURG—Customers who are confused about their natural gas suppliers will get clearer and timelier information on their bills with the passage of new rules from the commonwealth’s Public Utility Commission.

The PUC recently collected comments on the proposed changes, which take their cue from the successful passage last year of similar rules for electric customers.

Many customers don’t realize they can shop for a supplier through the website www.PAGas Switch.com, according to PUC spokesperson Robin Tilley.

Under the new rules, those who have chosen a supplier different from their distributor will receive information on the supplier’s rates and historical pricing data. Customer bills must also include information on when a contract is up and any changes in the terms of the contract.

“The changes are designed to provide ad-ditional information and greater protections for residential and small-business customers choos-ing a competitive supplier for their natural gas service,” according to a PUC press release.

“We have seen success with a rule-making implemented last year to ensure electric suppliers are transparent and are consistent in educating their customers on contract details, potential price fluctuations and changes in contract terms,” PUC Commissioner Robert Powelson said. “After examining the benefits of that rule-making to electric shopping customers, we determined it is not only beneficial but necessary to apply similar standards to natural gas suppliers.”

The regulations include:• More information on price variability;• A clear statement of the price per unit;• Customer access to historical pricing

information;• Separate mailings when fixed-term contracts

are expiring or there are changes to the terms;

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• A separate contract summary highlighting key terms and conditions in a consistent manner;

• A renewed emphasis on highlighting changes in terms or conditions.

The 1999 Natural Gas Choice and Compe-tition Act allows customers to choose suppliers based on price, services and incentives. The gas lines are still owned by the distribution company, but the same company does not need to supply the natural gas.

V I RG IN IA

Need to KnowA Virginia Tech class has developed an unbiased look at the Mountain Valley Pipeline

BLACKSBURG—The Pipeline Information Network (www.pipelinenetwork.org) might have started as a class project at Virginia Tech, but it has turned into a community resource with a unique twist, according to the instructor who got it started.

The website attempts to present a com-prehensive, user-friendly and unbiased look at the Mountain Valley Pipeline, a high-pressure pipeline intended to take natural gas from the Marcellus and Utica shale regions through 24 counties in Virginia and West Virginia.

“There was not a lot of information [avail-able] that the people impacted would really want to know,” Virginia Tech instructor Jordan Hill told American Gas. “We spent 10 weeks compiling research that hadn’t been [shared]. ... Our driving goal is to think about what a person who knows nothing will look for.”

That included creating a comprehensive list of every article written about the pipeline, a spreadsheet summarizing the hundreds of com-ments given to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and a look at what’s happening with pipelines in nearby states.

The class is over, but the work continues.“It was never a structured class, and now it’s

a community organization,” Hill said. “It now has no affiliation with Virginia Tech.”

Hill, an instructor in the school of public and

A class at Virginia Tech is helping to educate the com-munity on what’s happening with regional pipelines.

international affairs, said his one-semester commu-nity involvement class challenged students to think in different ways. Mindfulness meditation was part of the process. All decisions are made collabora-tively, no one is being paid to keep up the work and no one has a vested interest in the outcome.

The class was designed to connect with the wider community and help resolve conflicts.

“A lot of people can’t believe people are will-ing to do all this work just for a community that needs help,” he said. “It’s confusing to a lot of people that we are doing something just because it’s the right thing to do.”


state watch

MINNESOTA

Easy Does It A report says the state will meet new EPA rules with ease

ST. PAUL—Tough greenhouse gas rules com-ing from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency? That’s no problem for Minnesota, according to an analysis by Bloomberg New Energy Finance.

The report says Minnesota’s shift from coal to natural gas helps put the state in good stand-ing to meet requirements with relative ease. Combined with an increase in the use of re-newables and tough energy efficiency standards, natural gas helps make Minnesota a leader in attacking greenhouse gases.

The EPA’s Clean Power Plan wants Min-nesota to cut emissions by 42 percent by 2030. According to the EPA, increasing efficient gas-fired generation and reducing coal use repre-

sents the most important component in meeting that goal. Under the EPA guidelines, Minnesota could also choose to partner with other states to meet goals, including a joint emissions-reduc-tion program or trading in emissions credits.

The report says coal remains the largest generator of electricity in the state, but “natural gas is becoming more important to Minnesota’s power mix, providing 14 percent of electricity and accounting for 33 percent of installed ca-pacity in 2012.” That compares with 5 percent of electric generation in 2008.

Coal-fired electric generation fell from 59 percent in 2008 to 46 percent in 2013, and 396 MW of coal plants have announced plans to retire between 2015 and 2017.

Cheaper natural gas prices have allowed gas-fired generators to underprice coal, even for base load, in recent years. Previously, natural gas plants were used mainly during peak electricity demand.

Renewable energy, particularly wind energy, is also trending upward, increasing from 12 to 21 percent of annual generation between 2008 and 2013.

Minnesota is also a leader in its energy efficiency

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efforts. “Its energy efficiency mandates have driven state utilities to outspend many of their peers in neighboring states,” according to the report. The American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy gave the state its fifth high-est score for utility and public benefits policies in 2013.

T E XAS

Bigger in TexasBill would help convert government fleets to natural gas

AUSTIN—They say everything is bigger in Texas, and now natural gas is following suit.

Stating that natural gas is “abundant, clean and affordable,” state officials are doing their best to convert government fleets to the alternative fuel.

State Sen. Carlos Uresti said in a news re-lease that Senate Bill 12 “will jumpstart the use of natural gas and other alternative fuels here in Texas” by providing financial incentives for state agencies, counties and cities to purchase vehicles that use less polluting alternative fuels.

The bill would allow state agencies or local governments that operate more than 15 vehicles to apply for grants to replace vehicles or convert them to compressed natural gas, liquefied natu-ral gas, liquefied petroleum gas, hydrogen fuel cells or electricity.

Funding for the program will come from the Texas Emissions Reduction Plan through fees that have been collected from motorists and businesses since 2001. The fund, which currently has more than $800 million, allows up to 3 percent of the fund balance to be used each year for alternative fuel fleet programs.

The bill has a goal of converting 28,000 vehi-cles to natural gas and establishing 20 new fueling stations each year for the next 20 years. Texas had 130 natural gas fueling stations as of March.

Railroad Commissioner David Porter has taken a lead role in promoting the use of natu-ral gas since launching his statewide Natural Gas Initiative in 2013, including organizing natural gas workshops.

“Natural gas prices really have been low for five to six years,” he told The Texas Tribune. “So

that certainly spurs the need for this and the advantage from an economic standpoint.”

Porter said the transition of state fleets to natural gas “can set an example for the rest of the state and the nation and inject some serious fuel competition into the transportation sector.”


C O V E R S T O R Y


THE TALENT

POOLPeople are at the heart of any industry. As the natural gas industry continues

to grow and thrive, how can we make sure our future workforce keeps up with demand? BY M. DIANE McCORMICK

Natural gas has a growing role in our everyday lives. Of that, there’s no doubt. The coming decades show rising demand for energy, and all signs point to natural gas as an increas-ingly important part of the mix.

But rosy predictions don’t mean it’s time to break out the party hats and noisemakers.

At the heart of any industry’s growth are people, and the natural gas industry is confronted with signs that the future workforce won’t keep up with demand. It’s no secret that today’s workforce in all sectors is retiring in large numbers.

At the World Gas Conference 2015 in June in Paris, the Inter-national Gas Union’s Workforce Development Task Force unveiled its 2012–15 triennium work report, “Delivering on Talent.” The task force of 58 human resources and natural gas specialists raised questions, researched region-specific data and unearthed perceptions among employers and prospective employees.

The group was created in 2009 to “construct a better under-standing of the human element in the gas industry, covering all areas of the globe and all areas of the value chain,” and according to “De-livering on Talent” author Marius Popescu, CEO of Energy Brains Consulting, “We try to be a mirror for the gas industry. We make our research freely available, but then it’s up to the gas industry.”

Detailed answers must emerge from the industry itself, apply-ing the data to develop creative, effective solutions to attracting, cultivating and retaining top talent in a growing field.

In a Nutshell“Delivering on Talent” uses data to draw a picture of the natural gas industry’s current and future workforce:

• Technical and project skills are hard to find. In the Americas, the technical skills shortage falls at 3.27 on a scale of 1 to 5, from no shortage to severe shortage. Small companies are more challenged to mitigate the shortages than midsized and large companies.

• In the Americas, women constitute 27.8 percent of the work-force. This is higher than the global average of 23.8 percent.

• Though gas companies hire fewer women than men, it’s the women who tend to stay longer with their companies. In the Americas, the attrition rate of 2 percent among women is 50 percent lower than the overall attrition rate of 4 percent.

• American companies use fewer career development programs, and “insufficient career development opportunities” is cited as a reason for not joining the industry more often in the Ameri-cas than in the rest of the world.

Meeting the challenges requires a gamut of solutions, the report notes. The coming workforce wants to work in a field marked by transparency and environmental responsibility, but widespread un-derstanding of the industry’s impact on worldwide quality of life is lagging. Solutions include offering outreach to academia, cultivat-ing leadership, providing flexible scheduling and raising awareness of the industry’s benefits.


When it comes to attracting youth, one of the gas industry’s biggest problems, “if not the biggest problem,” is communication, Popescu said. Young talent choosing their first jobs are “generally unaware about the gas industry and the opportunities avail-able for them, which compared to many industries are quite amazing. Anything that puts the gas industry on the interest map of youth is a step in the right direction.”

At PSEG, a diversified energy company, Sheila Rostiac is vice president for talent, development and diversity. It’s a broad-ranging position accountable for one of PSEG’s strategic objectives—to attract, develop and retain a high-performing and diverse workforce.

At PSEG, everything starts with under-lying data and analytics. “One of my fre-quent quotes is ‘It’s always about connect-ing the dots across the function, across the businesses,’” Rostiac said. “When you talk about workforce development, that’s con-necting the dots from the youth of today to our workforce tomorrow. We take both a long-term view as well as a current view.”

The long-term view begins with spark-ing interest in the field among students in kindergarten through 12th grade. The PSEG Foundation aligns its philanthropic giving with PSEG’s long-term science, technology, engineering and math workforce develop-ment goals, and a signature program that has emerged is PSEG’s Science SPARK Partners. In this initiative, after-school and summer programs can apply for grants to support projects that spark curiosity and passion in STEM areas while also exposing eager young students to the energy sector.

PSEG also aligns talent acquisition and university recruiting with the foundation’s support of colleges and universities that train potential workers in industry skill sets.

Rostiac said it’s a matter of provid-ing “time, talent or treasure,” which can include advising on curriculum, acting as mentors, granting money or support-ing higher education outreach to women and diverse candidates. For example, the

Women Investing in and Guiding Students, or WINGS, program at Rutgers University links female engineering students with PSEG employees for shadowing.

“They’re seeing some of our projects, all the good work we have going on in the state live and in action,” Rostiac said. Those relationships are maintained as students receive opportunities for mean-ingful, engineering-focused internships and summer jobs. “Our goal is ultimately conversion. We’ve got a great success rate of converting current interns into our full-time employees.”

Building an Industry Talent PoolRetaining employees once they’ve been hired is another priority of individual natu-ral gas companies, but “Delivering on Tal-ent” suggests that the industry might fare better through cooperation to strengthen the overall talent pool. Retirement remains

the No. 1 reason for leaving a job, but sec-ond to that are those who transfer to other natural gas companies. Once they’re in natural gas, people seldom switch industries because their skills are highly specialized and take time to develop, but often compa-nies see employees leave for other opportu-nities, according to Popescu.

“It’s a limited talent pool that is circu-lating in the gas industry,” he said. “The gas companies should invest a lot in attract-ing the best talent available and develop-ing it to its maximum potential. I don’t think people switching companies is a big problem as long as the new people coming in have the skills to replace them.”

However, in the Americas, companies tend to promote fewer senior managers internally, begging the question, as Popescu put it: “Are you committed to growing your own talent or are you content with what the job market has to offer?”

C O V E R S T O R Y

Case Study 1: PSEG Captures STEM Talent

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Students from Rutgers University participated in the school’s WINGS program in 2015. From left to right: Apolonia Guerrero, Alison Gordon, Lucinda Borque, Jasmine Kumar, Sanchari Ghosh, Melissa Piccirillo and Kathryn Meye.


Piedmont Natural Gas, serving parts of North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee, is blessed with a large, stable core of employ-ees—many with decades of experience—and low turnover. But that blessing also can be a curse. “Our talent pipeline can get clogged,” said Renee Hansen, managing director of talent and performance excellence. “Attracting new talent is more difficult when people don’t see any growth opportunity.” When asked for feedback, interns often said they enjoyed working at Pied-mont and wanted to return, but few found job postings that suited them.

In response, Piedmont created the Business Leader-ship Development program in 2010. Every year, two recent graduates begin rotations through departments that interest them, circulating for up to three years. Summer Nichols was working toward her MBA from Winthrop University when she applied for the rotational program, excited about the opportunity to learn about the company and find her fit. In her second rotation in the supply chain and finance group, her skills so suited a particular unmet need that the company created the post she now fills—senior diversity sourcing specialist.

“When I first came to supply chain, my main focus was building a supplier diversity program,” Nichols said. “From there, it grew exponen-tially. It was an interest of the company’s, and they created a full-time position. It’s awesome they created that for me. I’m happy. Really happy.”

Nichols also participated in Compass, an internal networking initiative for select employees. Compass was “icing on the cake” toward career advancement, she said. “It’s just another stepping stone for those

who are interested in learning more about the company.”

Transparency and TechnologyAccording to the report, young people rare-ly cited company image as a problem when discussing factors that attract or distract from the industry, “which led us to believe that overall the gas companies enjoy an OK image with potential employees,” Popescu

said. But in a key distinction, company culture and values surfaced as priorities for potential new hires, leading to the conclu-sion that today’s natural gas industry must “work a lot harder to earn and maintain its license to operate.”

As executive vice president and U.S. practice chair for employee engagement at communications marketing firm Edelman, Christopher Hannegan sees younger talent choosing employers based on communi-

cation and transparency. They expect to understand how industry happenings drive company decisions, and they expect to hear from peers and have their own voices heard.

Tech savviness, Hannegan noted, also attracts younger workers by shaping the image the company projects. Because technology is such an important part of our personal lives today, companies that don’t offer modern ways to communicate suffer in comparison to those

that do. “On the sofa on Saturday afternoon, you’re on your mobile device. You’re looking at videos. You’re chatting and Skyping. It’s this very dynamic information environment where you’re participating in discussions and commenting,” he said. “Then when you go to work on Monday morning, everything goes back to 1985.” In short, companies should make a point of providing the same kind of dynamic communications experiences inside the office that employees enjoy after work.

Case Study 2: Piedmont Natural Gas Develops Careers

Summer Nichols (left) and Renee Hansen of Piedmont Natural Gas

say Piedmont’s culture helps new and existing talent thrive.

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C O V E R S T O R Y

Energy companies, including Alaska-based ASRC Energy Services, manage scattered workforces. “Our employees are spread out,” said Director of Corporate Commu-nications Sheila Schooner. “A lot of them aren’t sitting in an office building on a computer all day. They’re out in the field or on drill ships.” Prior to mobile technology, it was difficult, if not impossible, to reach employees in such remote sites as the North Slope, so “providing access to information and consistent messaging was difficult.”

ASRC Energy Services uses a broad range of strategies to heighten engagement so employees “feel like this is a worthwhile place and they want to stay,” Schooner said. As part of the solution, the energy company adopted theEMPLOYEEapp, a customiz-able mobile app that allows employees to download company-loaded information—“whatever they want, whenever they need it,” Schooner said.

Utilization has been strong. The

company sends memos “so everybody knows what’s going on.” Video messaging from the president augments face-to-face field visits, and those visits are posted for employees who can’t attend. Benefits infor-mation, ways to access payroll, job postings and global industry news are available at the flick of a finger. The company newslet-ter sent through the app includes project updates so employees who worked on an earlier phase can follow progress.

“People expect to be able to have some-thing on their phone where they can get information, and it’s really opened the door for us in terms of building a good company culture where they feel included,” Schooner said. “Even though they’re thousands of miles away from headquarters, they’re still in the loop.”

We Want You According to Popescu, making intentional choices toward building a skilled work-

force is critical for achieving the industry’s full potential.

In the final tally, workers and poten-tial hires in the natural gas industry all want what anyone would want: A positive workplace that respects its workers and pro-vides support and opportunities for career growth. For example, at Piedmont Natural Gas, all hires go through Piedmont Pride, a course in company values of accountability, trust, listening and respect.

Particularly if your future employees live where you can’t pay the salaries that other institutions might offer, such programs, plus flexible schedules, growth opportunities and a strong wellness package, are the differentia-tors. Even when employees seek personal and professional growth by leaving Piedmont, they get the message that “We care about you as an individual,” Piedmont’s Hansen said.

“We are very intentional about our culture,” she said. “And we don’t just let it happen.” u

Case Study 3: ASRC Energy Services Closes the Isolation Gap

Even on Alaska’s remote North Slope, ASRC Energy Services uses an app to ensure employees remain engaged.



FEATURE

Natural gas energy efficiency programs provide plenty

of support for customers in the communities they serve.

The challenge is: How do we get the word out to

truly engage those communities? BY JULIA BAILEY

FEATURE

STARTS HERE

ENERGY EFFICIENCY


As the number of energy efficiency pro-grams offered by U.S. natural gas utilities has grown over the last three decades, so have the investments made

by utilities in these programs. According to a recent American Gas Association and Con-sortium for Energy Efficiency survey, natural gas utilities funded 118 energy efficiency programs in 2013 with investments totaling $1.15 billion.

When you consider that these invest-ments have reaped savings of 151 trillion Btu of gas for U.S. natural gas customers—and helped avoid 7.9 million metric tons of carbon dioxide (equivalent to the emissions of 1.7 million cars)—it’s clear why energy efficiency programs continue to be the na-tion’s lowest-cost energy resource.

Carrots for CustomersNatural gas utilities continue to help customers reduce energy usage and lower energy bills by investing in innovative ef-ficiency programs, including cash rebates and financial incentives, strategic partner-ships, loans for energy efficiency improve-ments, educational and targeted marketing campaigns, energy audits and more.

Rebates and incentives comprise the main portion of those investments, repre-senting about 57 percent of natural gas en-ergy efficiency program budgets, according to a CEE report published in May.

Yet, with all of these efforts, there

continues to be a need to raise consumer awareness about the availability of these programs, a fact borne out by a recent survey by Harris Interactive Inc. That survey indicates that most Americans have very low awareness about their own energy usage and effective ways to make changes to the energy efficiency of their homes. Of the total respondents, 71 percent indicated that they did not take advantage of rebates, while more than 60 percent of respondents said they were not aware of current tax rebates or incentives for energy efficiency upgrades in their area.

A Need for New ApproachesWith the urgent need to raise awareness among natural gas customers—and to meet the growing challenges created by market and policy changes and rising standards for energy-efficient appliances—natural gas utilities are exploring new strategies to grow their energy efficiency programs.

Managers of these programs are working to improve their understanding of customer behavior and motivations, designing marketing programs to increase participation and focusing on customer segments that traditionally have been hard to reach. Community engagement, in par-ticular, is an area of growing interest, with projects such as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Energy Efficiency Strategy Project exploring new information plat-forms for “community-level [engagement] rather than solely targeting customers at an individual level.”

EDUCATOR WORKSHOPSLIBERTY UTILITIES, MISSOURIAfter Liberty Utilities, a natural gas utility serving 56,000 customers in Missouri, launched a program designed to educate elementary school students about energy ef-ficiency, it soon became clear that “teaching the teachers” would be a more effective way of getting the message out.

“With education being an important component of our energy efficiency pro-grams, we continue to look at how we can effectively utilize those funds to reach the most people,” said Matt Huber, a residen-tial sales representative at Liberty who also helps run the utility’s energy efficiency pro-gram. “We realized that by spending one day teaching a group of teachers we’d reach many more students in much less time.”

Meanwhile, the EarthWays Center, the sustainability division of the Missouri Botanical Garden, had the same idea and asked Liberty about conducting energy effi-ciency-focused educator workshops at their facilities. “They liked it, and we worked with them to create everything from there,” said Jim Biggs, manager of sustainability education at the center.

The first one-day workshop, geared to elementary and middle school science teach-ers, was held last year. “We presented back-ground knowledge on energy—from forms and sources to generation, usage and sustain-ability,” Biggs said. Information included a “Natural Gas 101” overview, a demonstra-

STARTS HERE

ENERGY EFFICIENCY

A SURVEY BY HARRIS INTERACTIVE INC. INDICATES THAT MOST

AMERICANS HAVE VERY LOW AWARENESS ABOUT THEIR OWN ENERGY

USAGE AND EFFECTIVE WAYS TO MAKE CHANGES TO THE ENERGY

EFFICIENCY OF THEIR HOMES.

STARTING EARLY


FEATURE

tion of how a home gas meter works, and resources on how to compare natural gas efficiency with other fuel sources. “We also give them tools to see if there are windows that leak and much more.”

The second workshop was scheduled for this past June, with more workshops at nearby universities planned for the near future. “It’s a growing program, and we’re hoping to work with Liberty to expand it next year with a whole new curriculum to keep it fresh and new so teachers will want to come every year,” Biggs said.

DOOR-TO-DOOR MOBILE CAMPAIGNVECTREN ENERGY, INDIANAVectren Energy, which distributes natural gas and electricity to customers across mid- and southern Indiana and parts of Ohio, has been a key partner of the Monroe County Energy Challenge from its very start, with a goal of developing a strong community project that could earn the Georgetown University Energy Prize, a nationwide energy efficiency contest, for Monroe County.

“We all felt strongly right from the get-go that we needed to make energy efficiency easy for people and even take it right to them,” said Tom Moore, manager of community engagement with the Vec-tren Foundation, which supports nonprof-it organizations in the communities served by Vectren Energy.

In response to that challenge, the MCEC launched the EnergyMobile—a Toyota Prius V hybrid stocked with weatherization and efficiency materials, information about utility rebates, tools and other items—to travel throughout communities in Monroe County (which includes Bloomington, the county seat). The EnergyMobile is funded by a grant from the Vectren Foundation. “We provided just over $59,000,” Moore said. “The concept is that we’ll take the EnergyMobile into neighborhoods and throughout the community.”

While the vehicle itself serves as a rolling billboard to generate awareness and interest

in energy efficiency, even more important is its role in providing actionable information on the steps people can take to implement energy conservation in their homes and facilities. While the EnergyMobile recently made its first trip to local schools, plans are to recruit energy ambassadors to drive it and distribute educational materials at farm-ers markets, parades and other community events, and even go into homes and install energy efficiency measures.

“When it comes to energy efficiency, people are intimidated about where to start or who to call,” Moore said. “That’s one of the pillars of what the Monroe County effort is all about—to make information available in an unintimidating way and to help them take the first steps. It’s important for us all to understand that even small steps can make a big difference in our energy usage.”

CONTRACTOR RELATIONSHIPSNEW JERSEY NATURAL GASNew Jersey Natural Gas provides natural gas service to more than a half-million cus-tomers in the state. In 2009, it launched the SAVEGREEN Project, an energy efficiency program that complements New Jersey’s Clean Energy Program, a statewide energy efficiency program, and provides residential customers with rebates and incentives for energy-efficient improve-ments. Because heating, ventilation and air-conditioning contractors work closely with the community on these types of upgrades, they are an important customer segment as well as a marketing channel for the program and have their own portal at the SAVEGREEN Project website.

The number of contractors actively participating in the program has grown from 100 in 2009 to its current level of more than 2,200. “We consider the con-tractors who work with our customers to be customers as well,” said Susan Ellman, energy efficiency marketing manager at NJNG. “They help spread the word about our energy efficiency programs and all the things we do for the community.”

The relationship also offers benefits to

PRIZE-WORTHY

Liberty Utilities, Vectren Energy, New Jersey Natural Gas, Xcel Energy and CenterPoint Energy all serve communities that are semifinalists for the George-town University Energy Prize, a multiyear, $5 million prize that began on the campus of Georgetown University and is sponsored by organizations including the American Gas Foundation, the U.S. Depart-ment of Energy and the Natural Resources Defense Council.

The prize is designed for small-er communities, many of which are taking part in the contest to get started on energy effi-ciency. During the competition, local governments, residents and utilities are challenged to work together to develop and begin implementing plans for innovative, replicable, scalable and continual reductions in per-capita energy consumed, highlight best practices and educate the public on energy efficiency issues.

To stay updated on the latest news on communities compet-ing for the Georgetown University Energy Prize, visit www.guep.org/category/media. --J.B.

GETTING A JUMP START

ENGAGING THIRD PARTIES


the contractors, such as no-cost training pro-grams throughout the year. “They can earn the CEUs [continuing education credits] they need for licensing,” Ellman said. “And we get a great turnout. In fact, since we began our training programs in 2011, more than 1,400 contractors have attended our sessions.”

In addition, contractors who register at the portal can download rebate forms, issues of the NJNG contractor e-newsletter and information about the latest updates to New Jersey’s Clean Energy Program.

Another highlight of the portal for con-tractors is the bidding area. “When we pro-vide a customer with a rebate after a no-cost energy audit and the customer indicates an interest in learning more about insulation or other energy-efficient improvements for the home, we post that customer’s information at the portal as a sales lead,” Ellman said. “That bidding portal has become an important resource for contractors.”

The contractor program is just one more way that NJNG gets the energy efficiency word out to customers. “We do a lot of innovative things, including attending com-munity events to promote SAVEGREEN in order to reach out to our many audiences—municipalities, homeowners and community business leaders,” Ellman said.

CLEAN ENERGY PARTNERSHIPXCEL ENERGY INC. AND CENTERPOINT ENERGY, MINNESOTAIn Minneapolis, discussions about the renewal of the city’s natural gas and electric franchise agreements with Xcel Energy Inc. and CenterPoint Energy prompted a robust conversation about how the two utilities could partner with the city to achieve its clean energy goals.

“Prior to the start of our 2014 franchise renewal discussions with the city, there was clear community interest in considering what the relationship between the city and the utilities ought to be, far beyond the right-of-way management language typically found in utility franchise agreements,” said Nick Mark, manager of conservation and renewable energy policy at CenterPoint En-

ergy. “Fortunately, our energy-savings goals are aligned in a lot of ways with the city’s, so it appeared that the potential was there for us to accelerate and enhance our energy-saving program results by working together rather than operating independently.”

Thus began the Clean Energy Partner-ship, the first city-utility partnership in the nation. “We’ve established an honest-to-goodness partnership among the city and the two utilities,” said Al Swintek, manager of local government relations at Center-Point Energy. “By working together, we believe that we’ll be able to move the needle faster and farther with regard to energy conservation, renewable energy and green-house gas reduction. Overlaying all of that is the concept of community engagement.”

An Energy Vision Advisory Committee was also formed to help the new partnership determine what the community needs and wants. Members of this group represent a broad range of backgrounds and interests in Minneapolis. Their role will be to represent those varying interests and serve as liaisons be-tween the CEP and the community—to help the CEP better understand what’s needed in the community and to communicate the

program’s accomplishments.Recently, the CEP published a work plan

for moving forward that will focus on three major areas over the next two years—engage-ment, data and policy. The plan, which is informed by Minneapolis’ Climate Action Plan, includes strategies to connect with Minneapolis residents and businesses in in-novative ways, provide commercial building owners with new data access tools, improve energy efficiency in multi-unit residential buildings, explore new financing options for energy efficiency improvements and support the city in its own efforts to reduce energy us-age. “We’re going to do a deeper dive, analyze the data, identify the gaps, and—once they’re identified—we’ll be able to engage the com-munity and put programs together to fill the void,” Mark said.

Although the partnership is just at its starting point, its members have already learned a valuable lesson, one that is worth-while for any utility launching an energy ef-ficiency program. According to Mark: “What we’ve learned already is that we need to do a better job of telling people about what we’re already doing and get the word [out] about that before we launch any new initiatives.” u

A CITY-UTILITY PLAN

In Minneapolis, a first-of-its-kind partnership between utilities and communities promises

to better serve its residents and promote energy efficiency.


Listings may be posted on AGA’s website for 90 days and in one issue of American Gas. Rates: AGA member companies: $150 for up to 50 words, $1 per additional word; nonmembers: $250 for up to 50 words, $2 per additional word. All ads must be prepaid. Unless noted, the code following each listing ensures confidentiality and should be referenced in correspondence.

TO SUBMIT A LISTING TO JOBS, PLEASE VISIT WWW.AGA.ORG.

J O B S

ENGINEERING COMPLIANCE MANAGERProvide engineering and technical support to Operations Services, Construction and Engineer-ing. Responsible for the design of natural gas transmission and distribution systems. Man-age and develop staff to include Engineers, a Corrosion Technician, Codes & Compliance Administrator and a GIS Engineering Techni-cian. Manages development, implementation and compliance of operational related regula-tions, codes and standards for pipeline safety and integrity programs to include TIMP, DIMP, Corrosion Control and Operator Qualifications. Ensure pipeline operation practices and proce-dures are implemented to comply with state and federal regulations and maintain system integrity and safety.

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE• Bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering or

other related engineering field.• Seven or more years’ progressive experience

in the natural gas industry in a technical engi-neering position. Equivalent engineering and management experience in a different indus-try will be considered. Experience managing technical staff and large capital projects.

• Strong analytical ability, technical writing and computer skills.

• Advanced project management and planning skills.

• Must have incident investigation experience.• Working knowledge of DOT and PHMSA

codes and regulations.• PE license is preferred; NACE Certification is

desired.

We are an equal opportunity employer AA/M/F/Vet/Disability. Please submit all inquiries to [email protected].

SUPERVISOR, GAS SYSTEM OPERATIONSUnitil is actively committed to enhancing quality at all levels of the company, a commitment that will help us meet the challenges of the rapidly chang-ing utility industry. We offer highly competitive salaries and outstanding benefits to qualified candidates and are an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer.

POSITION CONCEPTResponsible for the effective supervision of personnel and equipment utilized for the construction, operation, maintenance and inspection of the company’s pressure-regulating

stations. Responsible to ensure these facilities are operated and maintained in accordance with all applicable regulatory requirements, in a safe and efficient manner and to ensure that all personnel are trained and qualified in the safe and effective operation of these facilities. Also responsible for implementation of engineering designs and construction of capital improvement projects in accordance with company construc-tion standards, state and federal codes, while ensuring the reliable, efficient and safe delivery of pipeline gas to the company’s customers. Provide leadership, supervision, planning and scheduling of projects to ensure timely comple-tion and within acceptable budgetary toler-ances. Professionally interact with customers, regulatory authorities and employees to ensure the company satisfactorily meets its needs.

QUALIFICATIONS• Associate Degree in Engineering, related

technical field, or equivalent work experi-ence.

• 8–10 years of progressively responsible experience, including proven supervisory experience.

• A complete understanding of 49 CFR 192 and NH PUC 500 rules

• Must accept supervisory standby on rotation basis.

• Must reside within a specified geographic area and be available for duties during times of system emergencies.

• Must maintain a valid driver’s license.• Must possess Operator Qualification (O.Q.)

certification based upon the requirements set forth in D.O.T. 49 CFR 192, Subpart N

Unitil is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportuni-ty Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, race, color, religion, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, age or any other char-acteristic protected by law.

We offer highly competitive salaries and out-standing benefits. Please apply by sending an electronic copy of your resume to [email protected]. No phone calls please.

SUPERVISOR — LNG PLANTNew Jersey Natural Gas, principal subsidiary of New Jersey Resources, has an immediate

opening for a Supervisor — LNG Plant in our Wall, NJ location. Qualified candidates will be responsible for the following:

BASIC FUNCTIONSchedule and coordinate internal and external operations, maintenance and construction per-sonnel, and purchase and manage applicable materials and inventory, in accordance with the operations and maintenance budget of the LNG plant.

MAJOR ACCOUNTABILITIES• Provide management and scheduling of the

transportation and unloading of LNG at all LNG facilities.

• Strive to reduce the company’s capital budget by coordinating feasibility, design and construction activities, reviewing and ap-proving engineering plans to assure accurate installation and testing, and managing and coordinating external contractors to minimize potential conflicts.

• Manage, schedule and support provisional security personnel at key company facilities during periods of heightened Homeland Security.

• Manage, schedule and dispatch the Union workforce in accordance with the provisions of the contract, and provide leadership and training in order to achieve all safety, compli-ance, budgeting and productivity goals.

• Work with team members to develop and utilize methods for improving work quality and ef-ficiencies in support of continuous improvement.

• Perform economic analysis on various alternatives for services provided, in order to justify feasibility of doing business. Commit to coaching and providing feedback to team members for the development of technical skills and safe practices on the job.

• Provide company off-hour duty supervision.• Supervision of all associated maintenance

and repair activities performed at our lique-fied natural gas (LNG) facilities.

• Provide the direct supervision of the mainte-nance function including engine-driven compres-sors, pumps, boilers, valve maintenance and repairs, pipe welding and mobile equipment operations. Develop and implement mainte-nance schedules and procedures, ensure the safe utilization of all equipment and tools and closely supervise the activities of all craft person-nel to ensure safe work practices are employed in the completion of maintenance activities.


POSITION SPECIFICATIONSMinimum five-plus years’ experience in field operation in natural gas industry, and two-plus years’ experience with LNG plant operations (including boil-off vapor handling, storage and vaporization). Bachelor of Science degree in engineering or related sciences, and a minimum of 5 years in a related field, or combination of equivalent and experience. Experience in an oil refinery or natural gas utility is preferred. This position requires a strong knowledge of mechanical craft, supervisory and communica-tions skills. Individual should have knowledge of

process systems, pipeline and distribution system operations. This is a safety sensitive position and subject to random drug testing. Federal Operator Qualification requirements apply. Individual must understand Piping and Instrumentation Diagrams, and thermodynamic and cryogenic fundamentals as they relate to LNG. On-call supervision respon-sibility. Responsible for assignments related to the operation and maintenance of the LNG plant. Providing expertise and support for LNG plant operations functions: LNG truck offloading, alarm and control response and diagnosis, vaporiza-tion, NFPA59A and CFR 193 code inspection

and compliance, develops yearly emergency scenarios to test plant emergency readiness and conducts random audits on code and documenta-tion compliance with applicable LNG codes.

New Jersey Resources is an Equal Opportunity Employer, which includes providing equal opportu-nity for minorities, women, protected veterans and individuals with disabilities. VEVRAA Federal Con-tractor — priority referrals of protected veterans.

Interested applicants should apply at www.njresources.com.

M Utilities AR & Uncollectibles Conference2015SEPTEMBER 28 –30, 2015 / AUSTIN, TX

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To engage the public about safety, utilities need to

do what they do best: Drive continuous improvement

and create a positive customer experience.

BY BRENNAN CULVER

are tactics to help get the right message to the right target audience at the right time:• Explore segmentation: Look at claims

data and primary research to iden-tify trends, including firmographics, demographics and psychographics. Then, deepen your target audience segmentation—from list development to imagery and messaging—to have the greatest impact.

• Consider an integrated approach: If you are a dual-commodity utility, consider including electrical safety messages with your natural gas hazard awareness and safety messaging. Your customer doesn’t differentiate. And neither do litigators and auditors.

• Choose the right channel: The popular-ity of email, social media and online bill pay options is growing—but not across the board for all types of messages. Using primary research to understand how safety information is likely to be used helps to identify the most appropriate communication means. For example, many at-risk workers use safety informa-tion during on-site training sessions and thus prefer printed materials.

FOLLOW THE DATA

Utilities measure and report on all kinds of operational key performance indicators, including employee safety metrics, but are sometimes stumped when it comes to quantifying public safety. Common ques-tions are: How do we measure the success of prevention-based public safety communica-tions? and How do we prove prevention? Here are types of data collection and reporting that can demonstrate the impacts of safety communications:

Utilities are expanding public outreach and educational initiatives about safety to help continue to improve service to customers. With safety as a top priority and expecta-tions from regulators and the

public increasing dramatically, these public awareness activities are being evaluated with more scrutiny. Utilities must be able to pro-vide metrics that demonstrate effectiveness and impacts, not just report on activity.

Utilities excel at operational improve-ment, and you can easily apply the same approach to public safety communications as you do to other critical areas of your business, namely, by driving continuous improvement and creating a positive customer experience.

While all natural gas utilities have their primary outreach programs in place—such as pipeline public awareness plans for excava-tors, emergency officials, public officials and the affected public—today, continuous improvement demands more.

To apply your utility’s continuous improvement skills and experience to public safety, focus on three strategies: Consider the customer, follow the data, and track and benchmark for a strategic advantage.

CONSIDER THE CUSTOMER

As a utility, you know how to deliver memo-rable messages such as “Call Before You Dig” that avoid industry jargon. Why not apply this knowledge to all public safety messages, keeping in mind that your target audience is likely to be broad and diverse? Developing the most appropriate channels of commu-nication with your target at-risk audiences will enable you to best serve your customers as their preferences and needs change. Here

B U R N E R T I P S

SHIFTING SAFETY INTO HIGH GEAR• At-risk audiences: Your target audience

lists should include those most likely to come into contact with your utility. Con-sider input from all stakeholder business units and your regulators and insurers as well as those who operate in your territory.

• Delivery rate: Distribute your commu-nications via channels that will allow you to demonstrate that your information is reaching its intended audience.

• Response rate: To show that people are truly engaging with your outreach, build in response mechanisms, such as the abil-ity to request more safety resources, ask questions and provide feedback.

• Market research: Use your communica-tions as an opportunity to gather primary research data on your at-risk audiences. For example, ask them how many people they provide training for, what their safety needs are and what they think about your utility.

• Tracking and benchmarking: When you track the effectiveness of your safety communications against your starting point and benchmark your performance against others in the industry, you can then take advantage of the many strategic opportunities that arise.

TRACK AND BENCHMARK FOR A STRATEGIC ADVANTAGE

Tracking how your own program perfor-mance results compare over time and how your performance compares with others can reveal some powerful findings.

For example, we’ve compared perfor-mance and customer opinion metrics of companies that invested in baseline-only communications against companies that took their compliance activities to the next


level with an integrated approach to public safety across key at-risk audiences. The results were staggering, with customer per-ceptions of integrated and strategic com-munications utilities coming in 15 to 25 percent higher than baseline-only utilities. This kind of data is persuasive when de-veloping a business case for a public safety program or defending an existing program investment when budgets are being cut.

Once you have started, keep in mind that your public safety performance can drive a variety of key performance indica-tors. Consider the following:• Choose your performance indicators

wisely: When you choose your key performance indicators, think about your stakeholders. For example, customer satisfaction may not be operations’ top concern, but you can be certain that safety’s impact on customer satisfaction is something that your leadership will be interested in. In fact, according to an industry-focused customer impact report by J.D. Power in October 2013 (http://bit.ly/1NjmZwN), a positive correla-tion exists between robust public safety outreach and community stewardship

NEW MARKET OPPORTUNITIESWhat do a medical marijuana farm, a cruise ship and a locomotive have in common? It’s not a joke—these are just a few examples of the new market opportunities being created thanks to an abundance of natural gas.

DAMAGE PREVENTIONWho you gonna call? When it comes to damage prevention, more consumers and excavators are calling 811 due to concerted efforts by natural gas utilities. Several utilities have launched unique programs to educate the public to “Call Before You Dig” and are working to streamline communication between locators and excavators.

PROFILE: NGVAMERICA’S MATT GODLEWSKIWith more than 20 years’ experience as a lobbyist in the automobile industry, Matt Godlewski is in the perfect position to lead NGVAmerica during a transformative time. One year into his new role, he talks to American Gas about challenges and oppor-tunities, his work in promoting incentives for the deployment of natural gas vehicles and what he sees for the future of natural gas transportation.

NEXT MONTH

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satisfaction. Other research has cor-roborated that customer opinion of a utility is higher among those who receive valuable and useful safety mate-rials than those who don’t.

• Leverage public safety to your com-pany’s benefit: Management knows that higher customer satisfaction ratings result in measurable increases on a company’s return on equity and can help meet rate case objectives. Utilities that demonstrate their com-mitment to public safety and report on the effectiveness of their safety communications see positive results in regulatory audits, claims, legal decisions and general rate cases.Taking your public safety program

to the next level will deliver a strategic advantage and maximize the benefits to stakeholders and the community. Just do what you already know how to do—and do well: Drive continuous improvement. u

Brennan Culver is the principal at Culver Company and has more than 30 years’ experience in designing public safety pro-grams for utilities.


Luke Monaghan knew what to do when he spotted flames through a window of a neighbor’s house in Queens in March. The Consolidated Edison Inc. subject matter expert/liaison for Central Support Operations under Engineering and Planning told a teenager on the street to bang on doors and alert people to the fire while he went into a home and helped a mother escape with her baby.

The fire turned into a four-alarm event that destroyed or dam-aged eight houses, but Monaghan’s quick actions had everyone safely in the street before the firefighters responded. Then, on the

cold night, he used his home as a refuge for his displaced neigh-bors, providing blankets, food and comfort. Monaghan credits his emergency training and job experience with Con Edison for helping him handle the crisis. “Once you’re trained and you go through something like Sandy, you just know all the things to do during an emergency,” he said. u

Are your employees or company making a difference in your community? Contact Tracy Burleson at [email protected] to submit your ideas.

QUICK THINKING

M A K I N G A D I F F E R E N C E

ConEd employee Luke Monaghan (inset) relied on his emergency training when a fire broke out in his

neighborhood in Queens, New York.


The scariest thing about gas leaks is you don’t know

when or where they’ll occur. Itron’s gas AMI network,

equipped with pipeline monitoring and remote disconnect

technologies, helps utilities lessen the threat and impact of

leaks, enhancing safety for employees and customers.

Just one of the ways we’re working to create a safer,

more resourceful world.

itron.com/gas

Preventing leaks before they become a threat

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