TPT July 2017

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G LOBA L MARKE T P L AC E
66 JULY 2017
Oi l and gas
A deadly explosion in western US calls
renewed attention to the potential for
leakage of older ver tical gas wells
An investigation into a 17 April accident in Colorado, USA,
centres on a natural gas and oil well just 178ft from a house
that exploded in a fireball and killed two men working on a hot
water heater. On 19 April, well owner Anadarko Petroleum,
the state’s largest oil and gas producer, shut down 3,000 wells
throughout northern Colorado, including seven near the blast
site. The company said it was acting out of an abundance of
caution.
“Colorado residents must feel safe in their own homes,”
Anadarko senior vice-president Brad Holly declared in a
prepared statement. But according to David Kelly of the
Los Angeles Times, to those living in the Oak Meadows
subdivision, about 25 miles north of Denver, their proximity to
old and potentially leaky gas wells has them feeling anything
but safe.
Despite assurances from the Colorado Oil and Gas
Conservation Commission, the exploration regulator, one
resident told Mr Kelly that she would not reactivate a pilot
light for fear of an explosion. Others disclosed worries
about turning on the gas stove or going into the basement.
A common anxiety is that the soil of the neighbourhood is
soaked in combustibles.
Mr Kelly reported that the suspect well was drilled in 1993 and
changed hands several times before acquisition by Anadarko
in 2014. It primarily produces gas, with a little oil. Like all of
the shut wells, it is of the older vertical construction, in contrast
to newer horizontal wells that allow for exploration in various
directions. Commission director Matthew Lepore said there
are 54,000 active oil and gas wells in Colorado, of which
48,000 are vertical. (“Anadarko Petroleum Shuts Down 3,000
Wells After a Deadly House Explosion,” 28 April)
Industry expert Mark McDonald of Boston-based NatGas
Consulting has spent 25 years investigating gas explosions.
He believes that the lines that move gas and oil from
wellheads to processing plants are under-regulated. If not
properly maintained, he told the LA Times, corrosion and
leaks can occur.
“Hopefully, it will dissipate through the soil into the air but
sometimes it will travel along a previous trench or sideways or
underground into someone’s home and then you have a time
bomb,” Mr McDonald said.
› At this writing, Anadarko inspectors were focused on
underground lines associated with each wellhead,
especially those near housing and commercial developments.
An apartment complex is going up just behind the house that
exploded. The local fire protection district was also gathering
and analysing evidence to determine the origin and cause of
the fatal explosion. While the well in the vicinity was an aspect
of its probe, the district said in a statement, “This is a complex
investigation and the origin and cause of the fire have not been
determined.”
Corroded flowlines are identified as the
source of the majority of production-related
spills in Colorado
In related news of Colorado, ten days before the accident
described in the previous item (“A deadly explosion”) it was
reported that an audit of oil and gas flowlines in the state
found that about half of all spills from such lines can be
traced to corrosion. According to Dennis Webb, who covers
energy and natural resource issues for the Grand Junction
(Colorado) Sentinel, that means that as much as a quarter of
the spills reported to the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation
Commission involve flowline corrosion.
Flowlines are pipelines running directly from wells, typically to
the point of gas metering or where tanks collect produced oil.
Flowlines also may carry water associated with oil and gas
development. The flowline audit programme conducted by
the commission’s Engineering Integrity Group has, since the
start of 2016, carried out 30 audits, mostly focused on larger
companies. The examiners have audited more than 2,800
wells, reviewed more than 3,800 pressure tests, and done
more than 400 flowline-related inspections.
Mark Schlagenhauf, engineering integrity supervisor for the
commission, confirmed to Mr Webb that flowlines account for
40 to 50 per cent of all spills that energy companies report
to the agency. (“Corrosion Causes Half of Oil, Gas Flowline
Spills,” 7 April)
Underlining the importance to Colorado of the findings, the
US Energy Information Administration (EIA) has reported that,
with oil production from the Niobrara Shale increasing, more
pipelines are being built or repurposed to move Colorado
crude oil to refineries out of state. Besides commanding the
Wattenberg field, the nation’s fourth-largest oilfield ranked by
proved reserves, Colorado is also among the major natural
gas-producing states in the US.
Mr Schlagenhauf said that the Engineering Integrity Group’s
audit of spills reported from September 2016 to February
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