Active Projects

Marcellus NGL Storage

Wet gas production from the Marcellus and Utica shales will require extensive infrastructure to transport and store natural gas liquids. PB continues to perform extensive regional geological studies to evaluate the opportunities for subsurface NGL storage – in salt caverns, hard rock caverns and porous formations.

Salt Caverns, East Irish Sea

Gateway Storage Company Ltd plans to build an underground natural gas storage facility featuring salt caverns located beneath the East Irish Sea. When completed, the caverns will have a working capacity of 1.52 billion standard cubic meters (~562 million therms or 54 bcf), adding nearly 30% to the current gas storage capacity in the UK market.

Hard Rock Storage Caverns, Singapore

PB is performing final cavern design engineering and construction support serves for Phase I of the JRC (Jurong Rock Caverns) Project for the Government of Singapore. The first five hard rock caverns of this world-class facility being constructed on Jurong Island will be completed in 2015.

Hydrogen Storage Cavern, Texas

PB is in the process of developing a 4.5 bcf salt cavern for storage of high pressure hydrogen for Air Liquide Large Industries. Drilling was completed in late summer 2009 at which time our O&M group began leaching the cavern.

Acid Gas Storage Caverns, Confidential Location

In conjunction with the plans of a major energy company to permanently sequester a mixture of CO₂ and H₂S in a deep saline aquifer, PB has been tasked to develop basic designs for a salt cavern facility for surge storage of the acid gas mixture.

Hard Rock Storage Cavern, West Virginia

PB broke ground for a 1.0MM Bbl, mined LPG storage cavern with the drilling of an 8-ft diameter service shaft and two 3-ft diameter ventilation/pump shafts to a depth of 660′. When completed in 2012, this will be the first hard rock cavern constructed in the US since 1984. Prior to that time, PB constructed nearly all of the 85 US hard rock storage caverns.

LPG Storage Wells, Texas

PB recently completed drilling of two additional large diameter (24″) salt dome storage wells for a commercial operator at Mont Belvieu, Texas. The wells will be used for simultaneous commercial brine production and LPG storage operations, and ultimately converted to natural gas storage service. Located east of Houston, Mont Belvieu is the world’s most active cavern storage complex, hosting more than 130 caverns.

Hard Rock Storage Caverns, Peoples Republic of China

In 2003 – 2004, PB prepared front end engineering designs (FEED) for two 200,000 cubic meter (1.25 million barrel) LPG storage caverns in southern China. PB also provided Owner’s Engineer and construction inspection and support services to the project. The first cavern was placed into service in January, 2007 and the second in the fall of 2007. The project was constructed at BP’s Zhuhai LPG Import Terminal in Guang Dong Province.

Large Diameter Well Workovers, Louisiana

Our Field Services Division has completed a multi-year program to workover all wells for LOOP, LLC. Each LOOP cavern features five 30-inch wells, four of which are equipped with 20″ (or 22″) suspended casings for brine flow. Work under this program includes removal and replacement of suspended casings and inspection and lining of the 30″ cemented casings.

Loop’s caverns were developed in the late ’70′s by PB’s Fenix and Scisson division.

Subsidence Monitoring

PB and planned and performs subsidence monitoring for the majority of Texas and Louisiana storage facilities that are required by regulators to monitor subsidence.

Permitting

Situated at the world’s largest underground storage complex, caverns at Mont Belvieu, Texas are subject to special regulatory requirements. PB developed or assisted in the development of the successful Rule 95 re-permitting packages for all Mont Belvieu operators.

Storage Cavern Fire Protection, Texas

Texas regulations require that all natural gas storage facilities soon be equipped with fire fighting systems. PB recently completed the design and costruction of firefighting systems for a gas storage cavern facility in south Texas.

Leach Plant Rehabilitation, Texas

In order to enlarge an existing gas storage cavern, and to develop additional caverns for a leading storage facility operator at Spindletop dome, PB recently completed the total rehabilitation of an existing 3000 gpm leach plant and drilling of an additional brine disposal well.

LPG Handling Facilities, West Virginia

PB is performing detailed design engineering for topsides LPG handling systems and connecting pipelines in conjunction with the ongoing construction of it’s West Virginia mined cavern project.

Technical Support Services, Texas and Louisiana SPR Facilities

Since 1977, PB has provided continuous technical support services for surface and subsurface facilities to the US Department of Energy’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve Program. Among other tasks, PB recently developed plans and design concepts to expand the SPR capacity from 700 million to 1 billion barrels, as well as plans for a southeastern Regional Petroleum Products Reserve (RPPR) that would be hosted in both salt caverns and above ground tank farms.

Pipeline Mapping, Texas

IN 2002, PB prepared detailed maps of all plant and cross-country pipelines for the operators of storage facilities at the world’s largest underground storage complex in Mont Belvieu, Texas – nearly 8,000 individual pipelines. PB continues to prepare annual updates to the drawing set to incorporate recent  construction and piping modifications.