Q & A KeySpan's Nickolas Stavropoulos on record winter demand
Temperatures this month dropped to historic lows in Massachusetts, with Boston recording 3 days between Jan. 9 and 15 that were colder than 10 degrees Fahrenheit. There haven't been three days that cold in a single year, let alone one week, since 1920, according to the National Weather Service. The reading of minus 7 degrees at Logan International Airport on Jan. 16 marked the coldest day in Boston since Christmas 1980. The bone-chilling weather created record demand for natural gas to heat homes and businesses, straining KeySpan's delivery system to the point where 530 houses and businesses in Hull abruptly lost service that day. But the state's largest supplier of natural gas encountered few other major service problems. Globe reporter Liz Kowalczyk talked with Nickolas Stavropoulos, president of KeySpan Energy Delivery New England about how it handled the historic heating demand.
Q. How much did natural gas consumption soar this month over historic levels?
A. This month's consumption is about 25 percent higher than traditional levels. We broke the daily sales record 5 days the week of Jan. 12.
Our peak hour is usually between 7 a.m. and 8 a.m. when people are waking up and schools and firms are turning on their heat. On Friday, the 16th, consumption was 11 percent higher than usual during our peak hour. That's huge in our business. It was an unbelievable day.
Q. How did KeySpan prepare to make sure it could handle this record consumption?
A. When we acquired new companies just over three years ago, we undertook a detailed computer analysis of our distribution system. We've invested $450 million in Massachusetts and New Hampshire over the past three years to prepare for the type of cold weather conditions we experienced. The system in Massachusetts is the second oldest in the country. It's been around since 1823. We've replaced smaller pipes with larger pipes, and created more gas delivery points.
Q. What about more immediate preparations for this particular cold spell?
A. When we saw two weeks ago the weather forecast for Thursday and Friday, Jan. 15 and 16, we knew we would see temperatures rarely seen before in the Boston area. We identified points of weakness in our system.
We initiated several construction projects in the days before the cold spell. We did a 250-foot main replacement in the middle of the night in Revere on Vane St., putting in a bigger pipe that could carry more gas. In Roslindale (on Centre Street at Colbert Avenue) we replaced a smaller diameter pipe with a larger diameter pipe. We did that through three feet of frost for a gas line that was seven feet underground.
Q. Have new gas-powered electric plants hogged the gas supply, hurting KeySpan and its customers?
A. Our supply has been excellent. Essentially, what we do at KeySpan is buy a confirmed seat on the airplane. A lot of power generators buy standby seats, for which they can get a discount.
So when the plane is full they might not be able to get seats. That's what you saw last week when some power generators couldn't get gas supply. It had no impact on KeySpan whatsoever because of how we buy gas.
Q. It seems like KeySpan does not always operate efficiently, with workers idling in their trucks on the street for hours, waiting for a backhoe or supplies to do the job. Are you addressing this problem?
A. The efficiency of our work force is something that tops our list. To the uninitiated, things look easier than they are. Underground in the city of Boston, it's an incredible maze down there.
We may have to wait for the electric company or the water company to come and move their pipes before we can go to work.
