How Magnolia River’s Embedded Resources Helped a Large Natural Gas utility evaluate its Hurricane Response and Restoration Plan
CHALLENGE:
In late 2021, a large natural gas utility in the Southeast region approached Magnolia River to conduct an audit of their hurricane response in an area where the system lost pressure during the storm and flooded. The utility would utilize this report as they dealt with an insurance filing on the loss of the system and with the state public service commission in an effort to promote the utility’s message that they were being diligent and responsive to the needs of the customers in the impacted areas.
SOLUTION:
Employees from Magnolia River’s Embedded Resources division began working with the utility to determine the scale of their needs. After the need was determined, Magnolia River began a multi-phase project to audit the procedures the utility followed during storm and post storm response, temporary restoration plan, the execution of the temporary restoration plan, and the permanent restoration plan. The utility also requested that Magnolia River audit all construction records from both the temporary and permanent restoration work.
To accomplish these tasks, Magnolia River conducted frequent conference calls with the utility’s project team, interviewed key personnel, conducted site visits, inspected pipe samples, and accessed the utility’s document warehouse to review all construction records. An “initial findings” report was generated prior to review of the construction records since work was still on-going, and additional meetings and interviews were conducted following those initial findings. As construction came to an end, the audit of those records was conducted, and findings were discussed with the utility. After corrections were made to processes and paperwork, a final review and report was delivered to the utility. This report included both the audit findings, and recommendations for moving forward.
RESULTS
Upon delivery of the final report, the utility submitted the report to both its insurer and the state’s public service commission to prove that due diligence was conducted by the utility. This project laid the groundwork for Magnolia River to offer this same service to other utilities in the Southeast following the devastating impacts of other hurricanes and natural disasters in 2022.
This is just one of the many specialized projects that Magnolia River’s Embedded Resources division is currently engaged in.