Last month I blogged that salt caverns filled with natural gas might have alleviated the loss of gas supplies to as many as 19,000 southern Arizona residents during a nation-wide cold snap.
I see an article in the Arizona Daily Star last week about a hearing with the Arizona Corporation Commission that discussed this possibility in more detail.
The Star quotes Jim Boa from Arizona Natural Gas Storage as saying, "Had the Eloy facility been fully operational, we could have provided an awful lot of pressure support. Whether it would have eliminated all problems, I'm not sure." But he did confirm it would have alleviated the situation.
ANGS is going through the permitting process to dissolve up to 8 caverns in salt in the Picacho basin to be filled with natural gas under pressure to be used during peak demand periods. AZGS is participating in the permitting review process and the AZGS-supported Oil & Gas Conservation Commission would permit all such wells. [right, artist's conception of solution mined salt caverns for gas storage. Credit, PB Energy Storage Services Inc]