Inconsistent Quality of Natural Gas Fuels Fears; Impurities Become Bigger Part of the Mix

Summary

---

It used to be that natural gas producers would strip out traces of propane and butane before piping the desired fuel - primarily methane - to power plants and utilities. The impurities actually were worth more than the natural gas itself, so collecting them gave producers a nice side business.

But today, with gas supplies tight and valued at twice their historical average, many producers want to pump as much as they can - impurities included. The result is a fuel cocktail that many power plants and home appliances weren't designed to handle, presenting a number of safety, environmental and reliability concerns.

See the full content of this document

Extract

---

Inconsistent Quality of Natural Gas Fuels Fears; Impurities Become Bigger Part of the Mix

Industry officials frustrated by the increasingly inconsistent quality of natural gas have warned federal regulators about potentially dangerous levels of carbon monoxide emissions in homes, increased pollution from power plants and need...

See the full content of this document

---