Chevron removes natural gas from Louisiana cavern after sinkhole found
Ben Lefebvre, Dow Jones Newswires
NEW ORLEANS - A Chevron Corp. pipeline subsidiary said Wednesday it has started removing natural gas from a storage cavern in Louisiana after a sink hole appeared in the area.
Chevron Pipe Line Co. said the NS1 storage cavern was not in immediate danger from the sink hole in a swamp area of Assumption Parish, La., south of Baton Rouge. The sink hole, a dramatic erosion of the ground, appeared when the underground salt dome over a former mine gave way. The phenomenon prompted the evacuation of nearby residents.
"While we have no reason to believe that the integrity of the NS1 cavern is threatened, [the company] has elected to take the step of drawing down the NS1 cavern as a precaution," Chevron spokesman Gareth Johnstone said.
Chevron declined to say how much natural gas was being stored in the NS1 cavern. The company said it was not removing natural gas from two other storage caverns its subsidiary operates in Louisiana.
08/08/2012