Gas supply outage update: Bathurst, Lithgow, Oberon, and Wallerawang
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Safety message |
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We apologise for the inconvenience and disruption caused by the gas outage in the central west and are working hard to resolve this issue as quickly as possible. In these cold conditions, it is important to stay warm and do so safely. If your gas heating has been impacted by this outage, use alternative heating if it is available, such as electric, oil or wood-fired heaters, and please make sure these are all safely flued (ventilated properly). |
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Gas supply update - permanent pipeline works complete: 19 December, 2022
APA Group has now successfully completed the permanent repair of the pipeline that was damaged during the flooding event at the Macquarie River site, reinstating the Young Lithgow Pipeline service.
While the permanent pipeline is now complete, the temporary pipeline solution which was completed on Sunday 20 November, had already allowed APA and Jemena to restore gas supply to all customers in the Wallerawang, Lithgow and Oberon areas.
APA Group CEO and Managing Director Adam Watson acknowledged everyone involved in the response and their focus on restoring gas to these communities as quickly and safely as possible, firstly via the LNG and temporary pipeline solutions and now, the reinstatement of the permanent pipeline.
“So many people including the teams at APA and Jemena, the Local Emergency Management Committee, the local councils and community organisations have worked tirelessly to reach this milestone,” Mr Watson said.
“The APA and Jemena teams on the ground have received enormous support from residents and businesses, and I’d like to once again thank the community for their support. I’d also like to again acknowledge the support from the emergency services, SES, NSW Deputy Premier Paul Toole and the Federal Member for Calare Andrew Gee, and our contractors, who pulled out all stops to support the community and all three solutions.
“The effort to restore gas was incredible. Gas to vulnerable services and some customers was brought back online via the trucked LNG solution within 12 days, full supply was delivered within 18 days through the temporary pipeline solution, despite further impacts from flooding in the area, and the permanent solution was completed in under seven weeks.
“I want to thank all those involved with more than 200 APA employees and contractors brought in to work on the three solutions from across Australia. Without them we wouldn’t have been able to achieve this.”
During construction of both the temporary LNG solution and temporary and permanent pipelines, APA and Jemena have had the support of contractors from across Australia, including local contractors and businesses as far as Perth and Tasmania.
APA’s initial assessment suggests that the damage to the Young Lithgow Pipeline in November was caused by flooding.
Gas supply update - temporary pipeline complete: 21 November, 2022
APA Group successfully completed its temporary pipeline solution at the site of the damaged Young Lithgow Pipeline at the Macquarie River on Sunday 20 November, enabling Jemena to restore gas supply to all customers in the Wallerawang, Lithgow and Oberon areas.
APA and Jemena would like to thank all of those involved in this solution.
Jemena can also confirm that all residential, commercial and industrial customers, are able to resume their normal gas usage (including their gas heating) with immediate effect.
APA Group acting CEO Adam Watson thanked all involved in the response to the outage and their singular focus on restoring gas to these communities as quickly and as safely as possible.
“Our teams on the ground have been overwhelmed by the support they have received from residents and businesses. APA and Jemena thank the community for their continued patience and support,” Mr Watson said.
“I want to thank APA and Jemena crews for their tireless work and acknowledge the efforts and support of the local SES, the NSW Rural Fire Service, local Councils, and other community organisations.
“On behalf of APA, I also want to acknowledge the Local Emergency Management Committee, the NSW Deputy Premier Paul Toole, the Member for Calare Andrew Gee, and the many contractors and businesses who have pulled out all stops to help us safely restore gas supply.”
During construction of both the temporary pipeline and temporary LNG solutions, APA and Jemena have had the support of more than 40 contractors from across Australia, including local contractors and businesses as far as Perth and Tasmania.
Jemena’s Managing Director Frank Tudor said the response would not have been possible without the goodwill and support from local communities, and the broader gas sector.
“These past few months have been very challenging for Central NSW, with the impacts of severe weather and flooding, as well as the loss of gas supply for some towns,” Mr Tudor said.
“I’d like to thank local community members, who despite these challenges, have welcomed and encouraged our teams, and provided support for them on the ground.
Thanks are also due to the Local Emergency Management Committee, the NSW Deputy Premier, the Federal Member for Calare and all of the mayors for their help.
“Finally, I want to thank the teams in the field including those from interstate, local emergency services and council personnel, as well as the Jemena and APA team members who’ve worked tirelessly to respond to this incident.
“Their boots on the ground, local knowledge and technical expertise have been critical to our response.”
The temporary pipeline is expected to meet all the gas supply needs of Lithgow, Oberon and Wallerawang until the permanent solution is completed. The permanent solution is expected to be complete around mid-December, subject to weather conditions.
While access to the pipeline is still restricted due to continued flooding, APA’s preliminary assessment suggests that the damage to the Young Lithgow Pipeline was caused by flooding.
APA does not anticipate any disruption to supply when the permanent solution is complete and reconnected to replace the temporary pipeline.
Oberon, Lithgow, Wallerawang residents asked to reduce their gas use: 17 November, 2022
Jemena is asking customers in Oberon, Lithgow, and Wallerawang to reduce their gas use - particularly for heating - where it is safe to do so, following a significant and unexpected increase in demand.
As a result of an incident on the Young to Lithgow Pipeline, supply to Wallerawang, Oberon, and Lithgow is currently being maintained via a temporary solution that involves gas being transported by an LNG truck into the region.
This solution is only able to supply a limited amount of gas and unseasonably cold weather has resulted in a significant increase in gas usage.
Jemena is monitoring gas supplies closely and will keep customers updated as the situation evolves.
Temporary Pipeline Solution
At the same time as the LNG solution is providing some gas supply to these communities, APA crews are continuing to work hard at progressing the installation of a temporary pipeline solution at the site of the damaged pipeline at the Macquarie River.
While APA has continued to make strong progress on this option, the heavy rain and weather conditions on Sunday 13 November have impacted access to the site.
APA crews anticipate being able to continue construction of the temporary pipeline on Thursday, 17 November 2022 after repairing the access roads on Wednesday, 16 November 2022.
Given these weather conditions, APA anticipates the completion of the temporary pipeline solution early next week, subject to weather. APA will continue to assess this on a daily basis.
As soon as the temporary pipeline is complete, it will enable full gas supply to be reinstated into the Wallerawang, Lithgow, and Oberon areas
APA and Jemena statement: 14 November, 2022 - 4.50pm
APA Group on Sunday successfully restored the supply of gas via its temporary LNG solution enabling Jemena to start reconnecting some gas supply to the Wallerawang, Lithgow, and Oberon areas.
APA and Jemena would like to thank all of those involved in this solution, which will see gas restored to those communities slightly ahead of schedule.
Based on current reconnection rates, and in the event weather conditions hold, Jemena anticipates having all residential and small business customers in Lithgow, Wallerawang, and Oberon restored during the course of this week.
While APA anticipates being able to maintain gas supply to residential and small businesses through the LNG solution until the temporary pipeline solution is complete, it is subject to weather conditions and road access, following heavy rain on Sunday.
We understand the urgency for gas to be restored to these areas and we are working hard to achieve this.
To assist with restoration efforts, APA is providing additional resources to Jemena to help accelerate the reconnection process. Resourcing from APA and Jemena has also been bolstered by support from the local SES, the NSW Rural Fire Service, and Council employees.
The temporary LNG solution involved transporting a 42-tonne LNG storage vessel from Victoria and substantial civil works on site. the LNG storage vessel was connected to the network over the weekend, which allowed Jemena to start reconnections slightly ahead of schedule on Sunday, 13 November 2022.
By close of business on Sunday, 13 November 2022, Jemena estimated having:
- 12% of customers in Lithgow reconnected,
- 38% of customers in Oberon reconnected, and
- 80% of customers in Wallerawang reconnected.
Priority has been given to reconnecting vulnerable customers and welfare support services, decided in consultation with the local communities and councils. Jemena has advised they will also prioritise low gas demand customers such as households and small businesses.
LNG trucks will transport gas from APA’s LNG storage facility in Victoria and from a second facility in Perth to refill the storage vessel.
Temporary pipeline solution
At the same time as the LNG solution is starting to restore some gas supply to these communities, APA crews are progressing the installation of a temporary pipeline solution at the site of the damaged pipeline at the Macquarie River.
When complete, this will enable full gas supply to be reinstated into the Wallerawang, Lithgow and Oberon areas.
While APA has continued to make strong progress on this option with all civil works complete and the temporary pipeline considerably progressed, today’s weather conditions have impacted access to the site. Given these weather conditions, we continue to target the completion as safely and quickly as we can, but we will need to assess this on a daily basis.
After the temporary pipeline is complete, Jemena will commence the process of reconnecting all remaining customers.
Permanent solution
APA is continuing to progress the permanent solution and expects this to be completed around mid-December, subject to weather conditions.
Further updates
APA and Jemena are continuing to work with local Councils, community groups and emergency services to better understand how we can assist and support those in the community who have been impacted.
While access to the pipeline is still restricted due to flooding, APA’s preliminary assessment suggests that the damage was caused by flooding.
APA statement: 8 November, 2022 - 3:55pm
Positive progress continues to be made in response to a gas supply outage impacting customers in Oberon, Lithgow, Wallerawang, and Bathurst. As of 15:00 PM, Tuesday, 8 November:
- Make-safe activities have been completed by Jemena for the towns of Lithgow, Wallerawang, and Oberon (with the exception of hard-to-access premises). This is an important safety step which will enable gas supply to be reinstated sooner, once it becomes available.
- 75% of customers in Bathurst have now had their gas supply reinstated. It is anticipated that all customers will have gas restored in the coming days.
At the same time Jemena and APA continue to work together to deliver temporary and permanent solutions in response to the gas supply outage. Progress includes:
- APA still anticipates the temporary solution of trucking LNG in to supply the Lithgow, Wallerawang and Oberon communities could be in place this Friday 11 November, with a 42-tonne LNG storage vessel on its way to the region from Victoria and expected to arrive overnight.
- Once the LNG truck and connections are in place, it will allow gas supply to start be restored for some customers during the week commencing Monday, 14 November. As limited supply will be available, Jemena will prioritise reconnecting vulnerable customers and welfare support services, in consultation with the local community and Councils. APA is also making good progress on a temporary pipeline solution, with the pipeline and other materials arriving on site in Bathurst from Brisbane yesterday. This should provide enough gas to supply all customers in Oberon, Lithgow, and Wallerawang. Provided weather conditions hold, it is expected that this solution will be in place the week commencing 14 November 2022. Jemena anticipates reconnecting all customers within 5-7 days of this solution being available.
Jemena and APA are also continuing to work towards a permanent solution which is anticipated to be in place during the first week of December.
Customers with a welfare concern should contact Services New South Wales on 13 77 88. For gas emergencies please contact 131 909.
APA and Jemena thank the community for their continued patience and support during this difficult time.
APA statement: 7 November, 2022 - 9:45am
APA Group has continued to make good progress on a range of short and long-term solutions to restore gas supply to the Wallerawang, Lithgow and Oberon areas over the last 2 days.
Temporary LNG solution
APA now anticipates the first temporary solution of trucking LNG to the site to supply those communities, could be in place this Friday 11 November, in line with the 7–10 day timeline APA indicated might be feasible on Friday 4 November.
Civil site works to enable access to the transmission line will commence today in advance of the expected arrival of a 42-tonne LNG storage vessel on Tuesday. Following this, the first LNG tanker is expected to arrive on Friday to begin injecting gas into the line. Jemena will then be able to start connecting consumers in Oberon, Lithgow and Wallerawang to the network which will take up to an additional week. These connections will be managed by Jemena on a priority basis noting the temporary option only enables some gas supply to be restored. APA will provide additional resources to Jemena to help accelerate this process.
Temporary pipeline solution
At the same time as the LNG solution is being progressed, APA crews are progressing a temporary pipeline solution at the site of the damaged pipeline at the Macquarie River, which would enable full gas supply for all customers to be reinstated into the Wallerawang, Lithgow and Oberon areas.
APA has made strong progress on this option over the weekend with civil and site materials starting to arrive on Sunday. With the temporary pipe expected to arrive from Brisbane today, this temporary solution is expected to be in place early next week. After the temporary solution has been established, Jemena will commence the process of reconnecting customers which is expected to take another week for all customers to be reconnected.
Permanent solution
APA anticipates a permanent solution with full gas supply could be in place in approximately four weeks from Friday 4 November, subject to weather conditions not deteriorating and suitable construction conditions prevailing.
Further updates
APA understands the urgency for gas to be restored and is working hard to achieve this, bringing in crews from across Australia to assist.
As previously stated, gas supply has been restored to Bathurst, and APA is working alongside Jemena across Bathurst to reconnect customers there.
While access to the pipeline is still restricted due to flooding, our preliminary assessment suggests that the damage was caused by flooding.
We most recently inspected the pipeline between April and May this year and were satisfied with the risk assessment conducted and the integrity of the pipeline.
Since then, we believe flooding has caused major erosion of the riverbank, resulting in damage to the pipeline.
We remain focused on restoring gas to Wallerawang, Lithgow and Oberon as quickly and as safely as possible, and we continue to work with community groups and emergency services agencies to better understand how we can assist and support those in the community who have been impacted.
APA statement: 4 November, 2022 - 8pm
APA Group is continuing to work as quickly and as safely as possible to repair the section of its Young Lithgow Pipeline, which has impacted gas supply to the Bathurst, Wallerawang, Lithgow and Oberon areas.
Our initial assessment suggests the damage to the pipeline between Bathurst and Oberon has occurred as a result of flooding in the region, which is also making repair to the pipeline challenging.
APA is actively working on a range of short and long-term solutions to restore gas supply as safely and as quickly as possible.
Gas supply has now started being restored to some households and businesses in Bathurst, and this will continue over the next 1 to 2 weeks. This has been accelerated because this section of the pipeline was not directly impacted by the flood zone (see location on the map on page 2).
Subject to weather conditions not deteriorating and suitable construction conditions, we anticipate a permanent solution could see gas supply restored to consumers in Lithgow, Wallerawang and Oberon in approximately 4 weeks.
In the meantime, we are looking at a range of temporary solutions, including the potential to truck LNG which would be linked into the transmission line that services the Lithgow, Wallerawang and Oberon communities. If feasible, we anticipate a temporary solution could be in place within 7-10 days with further time required for Jemena to connect some consumers. APA will work with Jemena to prioritise connections as this only allows some gas supply to be reinstated.
We understand the urgency of this issue and are working closely with the impacted communities. We will continue to provide updates as works progress.
Location of pipeline incident
APA statement: 3 November, 2022 - 4.05pm
APA Group is working as quickly and as safely as possible to repair a section of its Young Lithgow Pipeline following a leak late on Wednesday 2 November, which has impacted gas supply to the Bathurst, Wallerawang, Lithgow and Oberon areas.
APA crews have reinstated gas supply to Bathurst, enabling network operator Jemena to start progressively turning gas back on for customers in the Bathurst area, however, it may take weeks to restore supply to all affected customers as restoring gas supply is a complex process.
APA and Jemena teams are working closely together to bring all customers back on supply as quickly as possible, and APA is actively supporting the gas restoration plan.
Supply to Wallerawang, Lithgow and Oberon is expected to remain affected for at least several weeks.
APA unreservedly apologises for the disruption this has caused and we are working with local authorities to understand how we can assist and support those in the community who have been impacted.
APA, which owns and operates the pipeline, is still investigating the cause of the leak but initial assessment suggests recent flooding is likely to be a factor.
The section of pipeline that has been affected runs underground, beneath the Macquarie River, and this area is currently flooded which means we have been unable to fully access the site.
Our crews are doing all they can at this time to help reinstate gas to all affected areas.
The weather and flooding we are experiencing in the area presents additional challenges in getting access to the site to commence repairs.
That said we are progressing several repair options in parallel to identify the fastest feasible restoration of gas supply.
We are working with local and state governments, emergency services and police to understand the needs of those affected and how we can assist them.
APA statement: 3 November, 2022 - 7.45am
APA Crews have reinstated gas supply into the Bathurst town, which will allow the network operator Jemena to start progressively turning customers back on in the Bathurst area where required.
This follows a gas leak overnight on the Young Lithgow Pipeline that affected gas supply to Bathurst, Wallerawang, Lithgow and Oberon.
Turning customers back on in the Bathurst area will take some time, however, we will provide updates as soon as they become available.
As Bathurst is progressively reinstated, gas supply to Wallerawang, Lithgow and Oberon is expected to remain affected for some time.
Crews continue to work as quickly and as safely as possible to investigate. An initial assessment suggests that flooding is likely to be a factor, however, we continue to investigate the cause.
While the investigation to Wallerawang, Lithgow and Oberon are expected to take some time, the gas leak has been isolated and made safe.
APA statement: 3 November, 2022 - 6.45am
APA Group crews are investigating a gas leak on the Young Lithgow Pipeline that has affected gas supply to Bathurst, Wallerawang, Lithgow and Oberon.
While we continue to investigate the cause, an initial assessment suggests that flooding is likely to be a factor.
The gas leak has been isolated and made safe, however, this is expected to take some time to investigate and repair.
Our crews are working closely with Jemena, the network operator, and as quickly and as safely as possible in these difficult conditions.
We will provide updates as soon as they become available.
