Natural Gas Pipeline to Go Under San Angelo Water Sources

A number of Concho Valley residents recently received letters regarding the planned development of a natural gas pipeline through Irion and Tom Green Counties.  SPGlobal reported last month:

Tellurian has invested in shale acreage and has proposed building four natural gas pipelines. Tellurian recently initiated the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission pre-filing process for one of those pipelines, Permian Global Access Pipeline.

Permian Global Access Pipeline filings with the FERC show the pipeline will cross three tributaries , Spring Creek, Dove Creek and the South Concho River.  Tellurian plans to put the pipeline below each flowing stream/river via horizontal directional drilling.

The pipeline will run between Mertzon and Sherwood. The area below is the most populated the pipeline will traverse in the two counties, Irion and Tom Green.

The next pipeline water crossing also has homes.  It's Dove Creek.

The Permian Global Access Pipeline will cross the South Concho River between San Angelo and Christoval.

All three tributaries feed Twin Buttes Reservoir, a main water source for the City of San Angelo. The City recently proposed replacing a city sewer line under Lake Nasworthy and plans to have the new line inside casement for safety reasons.  It's not clear if Tellurion plans to encase its 42 inch natural gas pipeline under each tributary.

Residents of San Bruno, California learned in 2010 natural gas pipelines can be deadly.

A faulty seam in a pipe owned by PGandE led to a tremendous explosion. The blast flattened or damaged dozens of homes and killed 8 people. To make matters worse, the section of pipe that led to the explosion was incorrectly listed as seamless, meaning it was not part of the safety inspections for sections with seams.PGandE faces numerous criminal charges for this incident.

Concho Valley residents expect their property and water to be safe from hazards.  Will the City of San Angelo take measures to ensure its water sources are not harmed by the planned Permian Global Access Pipeline?  Will elected officials do their part to ensure property is not harmed by the natural gas pipeline?  Citizens in Irion and Tom Green County have legitimate concerns and the time to hear them is now.

MotleyFool wrote in June:

LNG project developer Tellurian (NASDAQ:TELL) has proposed building the Permian Global Access Pipeline to transport natural gas from the region to Louisiana, where it's developing an export terminal. The pipeline would have the capacity to ship at least 2 Bcf/d and could start service as early as 2023. That time frame lines up with when Tellurian hopes to complete its proposed Driftwood LNG export facility.

Pipeline and Gas Journal reported in August: 

Tellurian has asked the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to initiate a review of its proposed Permian Global Access Pipeline (PGAP) following an oversubscribed open season for the 625-mile natural gas project from West Texas to Southeast Louisiana's growing LNG export market.

In its 12-page FERC request to initiate pre-filing review of PGAP, Tellurian emphasized the economic and environmental benefits the 2.3 Bcf/d, 42-inch pipeline would provide as an outlet for stranded natural gas associated with Permian Basin oil production. 

PGAP construction could begin as early as 2021, and the project could begin service by late 2023-early 2024. To meet that timeline, Tellurian anticipates receiving FERC approval for use of the pre-filing process in September 2019, according to the filing.

PGAP is one of three proposed pipelines that would comprise the estimated $7.3 billion Tellurian Pipeline Network, which is integral to its planned $15.2 billion Driftwood LNG export project near Lake Charles. 

Tellurian is an liquefied natural gas (LNG) export play.  Total and India's Petronet are the first big investors/buyers for Tellurian's LNG.  Bloomberg reported on Petronet's deal with Tellurian:

India’s Petronet LNG Ltd. signed a $7.5 billion agreement to buy into Tellurian Inc.s proposed liquefied natural gas terminal in Louisiana in what could potentially be one of the largest foreign investments in the U.S. to ship shale gas abroad.

Petronet will spend $2.5 billion for an 18% equity stake in the $28 billion Driftwood LNG terminal -- the largest outside holding so far in the project -- and negotiate the purchase of 5 million tons of gas per year. The remaining $5 billion of the total will come from a debt commitment.

India is one of the fastest growth markets for LNG and should soon become the second-largest LNG importer.

India's need for natural gas is clear.  It need not come at the expense of area property owners or San Angelo water users.

Update 1-2-20:  Tellurian CEO said "Most of the natural gas in the U.S. can be produced for as low as $2 per thousand cubic foot.  In our production in the Haynesville and associated gas in the Permian we can do it cheaper than that.  Less than $1."

Update 1-20-20:  The Standard Times picked up this story and used three of the four maps in this post.

Update 2-17-20:  A gas pipeline exploded in Corpus Christi.   

Update 7-4-21:   Morgan Stanley said Tellurian will decide on the PGAP pipeline by June 2022.

Update 2-6-23:  PGAP remains on hold as Tellurian tries yet again to find buyers for its proposed LNG.  The cost of PVC pipe has soared to the point a City of San Angelo sewer line will more than double from earlier estimates.

A new pipeline, the Matterhorn Express Pipeline will run below our water sources.   

Update 3-10-23:  Tellurian's Chief Financial Officer resigned effective today according to an SEC filing.  The company's Chief Accounting Officer will assume the CFO duties.  That gentleman is a CPA but that means less and less in today's world of ethical lapses and distorted numbers.