News

Pacific Gas and Electric Company's California Gas Transmission expects to begin receiving higher than normal heating value gas into its system at Malin, Oregon, at approximately midnight tonight.

This high heating value gas is the result of an outage at a liquids extraction plant in Canada. This will temporarily increase the BTU content of PG&E gas as the high heating value gas works its way though the PG&E system. An increase of approximately 6%, to about 1,080 BTU per cubic foot, will begin at Malin, gradually spreading south through PG&E's system and lasting approximately three days. Customers south of Stockton and San Jose will notice lesser increases in the energy content of their gas.

The BTU content throughout PG&E's system will remain within existing parameters for safe and reliable equipment operation. However, some customer processes may be sensitive to natural gas heat content, especially electric generation facilities, refineries, glass makers and customers using natural gas for cooking and drying. Customers testing their emissions may notice the increased BTU content.

PG&E Account Managers are contacting larger end-use customers that have been identified as having a high sensitivity to the BTU content of their gas, allowing them to make adjustments as needed. By Sunday or Monday, heating values throughout the PG&E system should return to normal.