Chapter Chair Jodi Gratton welcomed delegates for the day and introduced some brief messages from sponsors DBP and WestNet Energy. Stuart Bassett of Marsh Risk Consulting commenced the presentations with his outlook on identifying, understanding and managing risks on major projects.
He covered a broad range of elements to consider, posing the questions: is the risk outweighed by the gain of the activity? If not, don’t do it. He also discussed the methodology of identifying risk, analysing risk and evaluation/mitigation, and treatment of risk.
George Carydias of Australian Composites then gave a presentation focusing on ultra-violet curable pre-impregnated composite fibres for the in-situ repair of pipe. He outlined benefits, including a long shelf life, and then discussed the process of application.
Professor Paul Hardisty, Executive Director, EcoNomics and Sustainability, WorleyParsons looked at defining a project as sustainable when the benefit outweighed the costs, defined as environmental, social and economic considerations costed in dollar terms. He then outlined an example of weighing up different development approaches to a project that demonstrated what seemed like the best solution initially or intuitively wasn’t always the case when all costs were considered.
There was order in the house for the next speaker, the Hon Mark McGowan, Shadow Minister for State Development and Regional Development. He commenced by setting out the political climate in Western Australia before highlighting the importance of gas to the state economy and his role in calling for an inquiry to look at gas pricing which was subsequently established.
The Young Pipeliners Forum then took the stage for a mentoring session.
After lunch Steve Davies, APIA Policy Adviser, discussed CO2 pipeline development. He outlined the differences between the CO2 pipeline networks in the United States, which largely use natural CO2 compared to the pipeline networks that will be required to transport CO2 from power stations and handle a wider variety of compositions and impurities.
He outlined that there could be about 130 MMt/a of CO2 to transport in Australia should carbon capture and storage be widely adopted. He covered the role APIA was playing in ensuring that the industry was ready and the government was aware of the importance of pipelines in future carbon storage planning.
Santos’ Vijay VijayaRagahavan covered the important issue of bacterial corrosion of pipelines. He outlined the threats that sulphate reducing bacteria and acid producing bacteria can cause for pipelines. He gave the key advice that for microbiological corrosion you need to be pro-active – “you need to look for it and treat it,” he said.
Working to achieve project approvals and challenges of project implementation was at the centre of the presentation by Jodi Gratton. She outlined how careful management and planning mitigated risk to rare flora and fauna on a recent project, which traversed two regulatory regimes. She highlighted that early identification and engagement were key to successful project outcomes.
APIA President Peter Cox gave the Chapter an update on the Energy Pipelines Co-operative Research Centre (EPCRC), which had only recently been officially launched. He looked at what a CRC was, the partners for the EPCRC, and its mission. He also advised of the different steering committees that had been established to drive the EPCRC.
Steve Lewis of APA Group discussed the Mondarra Gas Storage Facility and the Parmelia Gas Pipeline. Mr Lewis discussed the planned expansion of the Mondarra facility, which involves significant capital expenditure and is due for completion in 2012.
The reasons for using the storage facility were looked at, including peaking gas, load management, intra-day and intra-week balancing and warehousing emergency supplies.
The concluding presentation was provided by Aart ter Kuile of WestNet Energy who provided an overview of the Stage 5B Expansion of the Dampier to Bunbury Natural Gas Pipeline. As well as outlining the timeline, he discussed the way in which compression enhances a pipeline and when compression provides optimal benefits for increasing pipeline flow.
Community relations were a major part of ensuring a successful project, while a final challenge was the commissioning that required a large amount of gas. As is often the case, planning and timing for the commissioning was key.
With business behind them for the day, attention turned to the WA Chapter’s Annual Dinner Dance that evening. The annual highlight of the WA pipeline calendar certainly didn’t disappoint. The Dinner Dance was sponsored by APA Group, Bredero Shaw, WorleyParsons, and Denso.
With a western theme, attendees were enthralled by the range of activities to entertain them throughout the evening. After a quick quiz, the Wild West gaming saloons (no real cash thank you!) were opened followed by the band, which got the room up and dancing. The WA Chapter team put an enormous amount of effort in to the evening to ensure its great success.