Monthly Archives: March 2009

Dan Gibson Building Green

Posted on March 19, 2009 by Dan Gibson | 3 Comments


There was a great article titled Building Green in the March 2009 issue of American Gas Magazine that focuses on “green” buildings and the LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) program for new construction.

Developed by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) in Washington, D.C., the LEED green building certification program awards points in five areas: building site, water efficiency, materials and resources, indoor environmental quality and energy use. The final point total, based upon written documentation submitted after construction or renovation concludes, determines the building’s level of LEED certification as Certified, Silver, Gold or Platinum.

090318greenbldg Building Green

Dominion Resources’ new administration building for its Cove Point liquefied natural gas facility is situated on Maryland’s Chesapeake Bay. The use of drought-resistant landscaping, a highly reflective roof, insulated glass and other features helped the building earn LEED Silver certification. Photo courtesy of Dominion Resources.

The article also does a excellent job of examining the construction of an administration building at Dominion’s Cove Point facility. Some of the highlights from that construction include:

  • Purchasing about 25 percent of construction materials—including bricks, windows and cement—from local producers, thus reducing the amount of energy used for transportation.
  • Recycling approximately 85 percent of construction waste rather than sending it to a landfill.
  • Installing downward-focused outdoor lighting to prevent “light pollution” that disturbs nocturnal animals.
  • Using a highly reflective roof, highly insulated walls and insulated glass in windows and doors to reduce heat and cooling loss.
  • Installing plumbing fixtures that use 40 percent less water than their standard counterparts.
  • Encouraging employees to commute by bike (by offering on-site showers) or car pool (by reserving prime parking spaces for registered car and van pools).

Those are some great examples of how business can have a considerable positive impact on the environment with some planning and dedication. You can download this pdf to read the entire article and visit aga.org for more articles from American Gas Magazine.

Green building is a hot topic as people are more and more concerned with our environment. Check out this useful presentation on the benefits of natural gas in new construction. AGA also has a section on natural gas efficiency. 90% of the energy content of natural gas is delivered to customers as a useful fuel. 90% … that’s huge.

Does anyone have some good links or stories about green construction to share?

Posted in environment, Natural Gas | Tagged , | 3 Comments

Chris McGill Natural Gas Market Indicators

Posted on March 18, 2009 by Chris McGill | Comments Off


090316ngmi Natural Gas Market Indicators

The natural gas market is exercising another period of price volatility, however, the price spike this time is down not up. How will this impact policy makers and what will consumers think? The current acquisition price for natural gas is dangerously close (if not already there) to not supporting the cost of replacing produced reserves. Logically, this cannot go on forever and certainly will not.

However, as the political leadership of the country considers options for our energy future, where does natural gas fit? The resource is vast, diverse and abundant but pricing presents a roller coaster of issues often not related to supply and demand fundamentals.

You can download the full Natural Gas Market Indicators, including discussion on Reported Prices, Weather, Natural Gas Production, Rig Counts, Pipeline Imports and Exports, and LNG Markets by visiting this link.

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Tom Moskitis Regional meetings to obtain public input on OCS announced by DOI

Posted on March 17, 2009 by Tom Moskitis | Comments Off


The U.S. Department of the Interior has announced four regional meetings to obtain public input on energy development on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS). Secretary Ken Salazar has extended the comment period for the proposed 2010-2015 OCS 5-Year Oil & Gas Leasing Program Plan until September 23, 2009 to gather more information before moving forward. It is critically important that the Secretary and his Department hear from supporters of energy exploration and production on the federal OCS. They are sure to hear from opponents! We encourage you and/or others in your company to attend and speak out at one of these meetings, perhaps making the following points:

  • Our economy and national security require less imported oil and more domestic energy production.
  • Natural Gas is our cleanest fossil fuel and its use is good for the environment and an answer to the challenge of climate change.
  • Abundant resources of natural gas exist on the federal OCS.
  • This gas can be found and produced cleanly and safely as proven by the offshore production industry’s outstanding safety record. The risk of environmental damage is very, very, small.
  • Coastal states should be able to decide on energy exploration and production off their coasts and share in production royalties.
  • The OCS offers the potential of some $1.7 Trillion in potential new revenues for federal, State and local governments, money that can be used to fund renewable energy, conservation, roads, schools and other critical programs.
  • OCS energy development will provide new jobs and an economic boost to coastal states and needed new supplies of clean natural gas for the nation.

Environmentally conscious countries all over the world explore offshore and safely produce oil and natural gas every day. Our country needs to get with the program and start producing more natural gas from our offshore waters. I hope that you will add your voice to the debate. More information is available here. You can leave your comments on the draft here.

Posted in energy, Natural Gas | Comments Off

Dan Gibson AT&T to purchase 8,000 Compressed Natural Gas vehicles

Posted on March 12, 2009 by Dan Gibson | 5 Comments


In one of the largest U.S. corporate commitments to Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) vehicles to date, AT&T announced that they would be spending an estimated $350 million to purchase about 8,000 CNG vehicles and approximately $215 million to begin replacing its passenger cars with alternative-fuel models. That purchase is part of a long-term strategy to deploy more than 15,000 alternative-fuel vehicles over the next 10 years

090312att copy AT&T to purchase 8,000 Compressed Natural Gas vehicles

A Green Technology insignia will make the vehicles easy to identify on the road. CNG vehicles offer up to a 39 percent improvement in fuel economy and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by up to 29 percent.

The benefits of CNG vehicles have been well documented and those benefits are especially apparent in fleet vehicles. These CNG vehicles are expected to emit approximately 25 percent less greenhouse gas emissions than those traditionally powered by gasoline.

The Center for Automotive Research (CAR) in Ann Arbor, Mich., estimates that the new vehicles will save 49 million gallons of gasoline and reduce carbon emissions by 211,000 metric tons over the 10-year deployment period. That is equivalent to removing the emissions from more than 38,600 traditional passenger vehicles for a year.

AT&T also expects to replace 7,100 passenger cars over the next 10 years. The alternative-fuel vehicles, are expected to offer up to a 39 percent improvement in fuel economy and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by up to 29 percent.

The full release is available here and you can see a short video from AT&T here. You can also read about the story at the PickensPlan blog.

I wonder who the next big fleet operator to make the switch is going to be. Who do you think it will be?

Posted in Natural Gas | Tagged | 5 Comments