El Paso Corporation

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

El Paso Corporation (NYSE: EP), headquartered in Houston, Texas, provides natural gas and related energy products and is one of North America's largest independent natural gas producers. In 1999 the company doubled in size when it merged with Birmingham, Alabama based natural gas giant Sonat.

The company owns North America's largest natural gas pipeline system which goes from border-to-border and coast-to-coast. The system includes Colorado Interstate Gas, El Paso Natural Gas, Southern Natural Gas, and Tennessee Gas Pipeline. The El Paso Corporation also owns fifty percent of Great Lakes Transmission and Florida Gas Transmission and employs 6,000 people. Florida Gas is part of Southern Natural Gas.

The company's major offices are located in Houston, Texas; Birmingham, Alabama; and Colorado Springs, Colorado.

Contents

[edit] History

The company was founded in 1928 by Paul Kayser, who identified the city of El Paso, Texas as a good market for natural gas transported by pipeline from Jal, New Mexico.

[edit] Environmental record

On August 19, 2000, a natural gas transmission pipeline operated by El Paso Corporation ruptured in Carlsbad, New Mexico, killing twelve campers beside the Pecos River due to extensive thermal burns, carbon monoxide poisoning, and smoke inhalation.[1] According to a report by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), the cost of the accident was stated to cover around $1 million.[1] Fortunately, the two pipelines that were supported on the bridge of the Pecos River landed on the side of the river and neither one leaked. The damage also included the campers’ three vehicles and camping equipment destroyed and vegetation on both sides of the riverbanks burned.[1] According to the NTSB, investigations showed that the section of the pipe that ruptured was due to severe damage from corrosion and had not been inspected internally since the 1950s.[2] Regardless, the United States Department of Transportation sought a $2.52 million civil penalty for safety violations.[3] In 2002, El Paso Corporation settled lawsuits regarding the natural gas pipeline explosion that killed 12 campers.[4]

[edit] Notes and references

  1. ^ a b c "Pipeline Accidental Report". - National Transportation Safety Board - February 11, 2003 - Retrieved: May 16, 2008
  2. ^ "El Paso Corp. settles with victims' families". - Albuquerque Business Journal. - September 13, 2002. - Retrieved: May 16, 2008
  3. ^ El Paso page - Citizen Power Inc. - August 14, 2001. - Retrieved: May 16, 2008
  4. ^ Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Import Terminals: Sitting, Safety, and Regulation. - NCSE Online. - May 1, 2007. - Retrieved: May 16, 2008

[edit] External links

 This article about a company or corporation involved in the energy industry is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.
Languages