LVXXU

Natural Gas Infrastructure Dependencies
As noted, the electricity sector is increasingly reliant on natural gas as a fuel for power generation. On the flip
side, many physical and operational components of natural gas TS&D infrastructures depend on electricity for
key functions. In addition, other key sectors, such as industry and natural gas vehicles, depend on reliable and
robust natural gas TS&D systems for a range of applications.
Gas System Dependencies on Electricity
Most pumps and compressors along natural gas gathering and transmission pipelines are fueled with gas flowing
through the station, 88 with only about 5 percent of installed compression horsepower on interstate pipelines
nationwide requiring electricity to run. 89, 90 In some areas of the Nation where there are concerns about emissions
and the increased speed of permitting of electric compressors, there is significantly greater reliance on electric
compressors. 91, 92 Pennsylvania, Ohio, and California, for example, have a higher percentage of compressors powered
by electricity than the national average. 93 On the flip side, increased reliance on electricity-powered compressors
could increase the vulnerability of the gas transmission system to power outages. During the 2011 “Big Chill” in the
Southwest (see box), for example, rolling blackouts contributed to natural gas production outages (primarily affecting
compressors on gathering lines), which in turn led to power generation curtailments. 94
While compression facilities for underground natural gas storage generally are fueled by offtake gas, they
may still require electric power. 95 Electricity is needed for dehydration of underground stored gas. Pipelinequality
natural gas is pumped into underground formations for storage; when the gas is withdrawn, it requires
processing to remove water from the natural gas and to filter the gas all over again.
Also, most of the Nation’s liquefied natural gas facilities store this gas for periods of peak demand or pipeline gas supply
interruption. Cryogenic liquefaction of natural gas allows large volumes of gas to be stored and transported over long
distances that cannot be technically or economically served by pipelines, and this process requires large amounts of
electricity. These facilities are distributed across the Nation and generally are found near electric power stations. 96
Centralized gas control stations monitor the flow of natural gas and collect, assimilate, and manage data received from
compressor stations all along the pipeline. These control systems can integrate gas flow and measurement data with
other accounting, billing, and contract systems. The data are transmitted through a communications network that
could consist of company-owned, fiber-optic lines; leased telephone lines; ground- or satellite-based microwave; or
radio communication systems. 97 The total loss of communications could result in manual operations of the affected
pipeline. Many systems in the oil, gas, and alternative fuels infrastructures are increasingly monitored and controlled
remotely through cyber networks that are also powered by electricity. 98
Dependencies of Other Sectors on Natural Gas TS&D Systems
Dependencies of other infrastructures on the natural gas TS&D sector include the following:
• Supply of natural gas liquids for petroleum refining. Growth in production of natural gas liquids
has stimulated renewed interest in petrochemicals production where ethane and propane are
key feedstocks (see Chapter V, Improving Shared Transport Infrastructures, for a more detailed
discussion).
• Natural gas as a transportation fuel. Compressed natural gas vehicles also rely on natural gas. Although
there are only about 120,000 compressed natural gas vehicles in the United States today, the Energy
Information Administration forecasts increases in natural gas vehicles over the next decades, especially
in heavy-duty vehicles. 99
• Industrial consumption of natural gas. Given low natural gas prices over the past several years and
forecasts of abundant supplies at moderate prices in the future, there has been a resurgence of natural
gas use in industrial applications in the United States, as seen in Table 2-4.
QER Report: Energy Transmission, Storage, and Distribution Infrastructure | April 2015 2-23