Natural Gas Infrastructure: Compressor Stations and Underground
Storage Part 1 Posted: September 11, 2011 Compression.
Underground gas storage. Marcellus Shale. What do these mean for
the East Coast natural gas market? After having the opportunity
recently to tour a Dominion Energy compressor and gas storage
facility in western PA, my answer would be a lot. Over the last
60-plus years, natural gas infrastructure has been installed in
this part of the state, with interstate pipelines intersecting
and traveling through southwestern PA to various compressor
stations in the region. All of these contribute to some of the
advantages western PA holds in the development of Marcellus
Shale. Compression of gas is required to increase or stabilize
the pressure in interstate pipelines to ensure its delivery to
markets of residential, commercial, and industrial customers in
PA and beyond. Underground storage provides a place to
“inventory” gas during periods when production is greater than
demand, typically during the sum