Open AccessTask 4 - natural gas storage - end user interaction
Publication year - 1997
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Reports
DOI - 10.2172/570239
Subject(s) - natural gas , flexibility (engineering) , task (project management) , pipeline (software) , order (exchange) , natural gas storage , computer science , petroleum engineering , environmental science , engineering , business , waste management , operating system , economics , systems engineering , finance , management
New opportunities have been created for underground gas storage as a result of recent regulatory developments in the energy industry. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) Order 636 directly changed the economics of gas storage nationwide. Pipelines have been required to {open_quotes}unbundle{close_quotes} their various services so that pipeline users can select only what they need from among the transportation, storage, balancing and the other traditional pipeline services. At the same time, the shift from Modified Fixed Variable (MFV) rate design to Straight Fixed Variable (SFV) rate design has increased the costs of pipeline capacity relative to underground storage and other supply options. Finally, the ability of parties that have contracted for pipeline and storage services to resell their surplus capacities created by Order 636 gives potential gas users more flexibility in assembling combinations of gas delivery services to create reliable gas deliverability. In response to Order 636, the last two years have seen an explosion in proposals for gas storage projects