Technical & Innovation Center Program

Creation of a highly efficient underground gas storage system capable of assuring engineering and environmental safety, using new technologies, information technology innovations and best practices will allow reinforcement of UGS operations and management towards more sustainability and to help to assure reliable and flexible gas delivery to end use consumers. This Technical and Innovation Center session will look at innovations, best practices, new technologies and research in gas storage technology and applications.

A primary goal of pipeline integrity management is to determine the overall process for the integrity assessment of pipelines and to control and optimize the implementation of inspections, maintenance and repairs of the network. This task involves a broad array of procedures, processes and products. This Technical and Innovation Center session will provide case studies and product and process examples related to pipeline integrity management. This session will explore the latest technologies and approaches being applied around the world.

All over the world several large gas transportation pipeline projects have been executed over the past years to fulfil an increased demand for and secure supply of natural gas. In some countries gas infrastructure developments are new experiences.

This Technical and Innovation Center session will be composed from practical and applied case studies on:

• New projects
• New technologies
• New products
• New services
• Innovative management of processes

Natural gas operations, in particular gas distribution, has benefited from an increase in new technologies over the last decade. These advances have been in materials for pipes as well as construction and maintenance activities.

This session explores the latest in material developments, construction and system maintenance practices as well as applications for renewable technologies in gas operations.

Cost-effective operation and maintenance of gas transmission systems/pipelines, compressor substations, transfer points with metering, is an essential precondition for an increase, or at least maintenance, of the position of natural gas in a global energy mix, as well as to further development of the global market of natural gas.

This Technical and Innovation Center session will be composed of practical and applied case studies and papers on:

• New projects
• New technologies
• New products
• New services
• Innovative management of processes

Environmental and societal impact of gas transporting systems and their operations, as well as safety of operation, are the key factors for public acceptance of gas facilities. Excellent environmental and safety performance streamlines the way to authorization of constructions and may have a principal impact on an economy of installations and operations. Accordingly, sophisticated detection and analytical methods are integral tools for responsible management and operation of gas networks.

The need for knowledge transfer and the increase in data relating to system operations and conditions are pushing the natural gas industry to use technologies from social media and the retail business industries.

This session explores the use of augmented reality for knowledge transfer and Big Data analytics in managing the new reality of natural gas distribution operations. Key topics include:

• Integrity and risk management
• Underground locating/marking of facilities
• Third-party damage mitigation
• Adapting social media tools to gas operations
• Knowledge transfer and training