Are you maximizing throughput or just managing constraints?
Natural gas demand is rising, assets are aging, and transmission systems must deliver more throughput without pipeline network expansion. The industry is pivoting focus from expansion to optimization–operating existing systems smarter, safer, and more efficiently.
What is your optimization strategy? You cannot improve what you do not measure. Solomon's Worldwide Natural Gas Transmission System Performance Analysis (NGTS Study) is a Comparative Performance Analysis™ (CPA™) designed to benchmark performance with normalized comparisons of key performance indicators (KPIs), identify gaps, uncover practical insights to optimize operations, reduce costs, and position your company to maximize profitability in any given market.
Leverage insight from a vetted, proprietary performance database of >100 transmission systems worldwide and >300 transmission performance metrics.
- How does my performance compare; is it significantly different from others?
- How do my pipeline integrity costs compare to those of competitors?
- How effective is my pipeline Integrity Management Program?
- Are you under- or over-investing in pipeline integrity?
- How do my reliability and maintenance costs compare to the top performers?
- What is the value of closing my performance gaps compared to peers?
- How do I judge the performance of joint-venture partner operators?
- Are you realizing proportional improvements in the reduction of ruptures and leaks?
- Are you investing sufficiently in engineering resources to track and optimize prime mover energy consumption?
- EPC™, which represents combined pipeline, compression, and meter station assets
- Utilized capacity (Tcf-mi or m³-km)
- Diameter-length/size groups
- Average pipeline diameter
- Transportation modes
- Geographical locations
Our Approach
Delivers two perspectives: the big picture of where you stand to peers and the details you need to take an informed and targeted approach to improving performance.
- Comprehensive performance assessment of maintenance cost, pipeline integrity, operating expenditures (OpEx), personnel costs, work hours, energy consumption, downtime, reliability, safety, and more to identify gaps and deliver clear, actionable insights to achieve operational excellence.
- Operating performance data analyzed using three divisors (volume-length, diameter-length, and Equivalent Pipeline Complexity (EPC™)) ensuring an equitable, apples-to-apples comparison across diverse transmission systems.
- In-depth gap analysis with estimated cost optimization potential, providing a clear, data-driven roadmap to operational excellence.
- Covers onshore natural gas transmission pipeline systems. The study scope includes metering at custody transfer, pipeline operations, and compression.
Client Testimonials
We assumed all our assets operated similarly. When we received our results, we found significant differences, which we used to commission a series of improvements to bring all the assets up to the same operating levels. NORTH AMERICAN STUDY PARTICIPANT
Participating in the study provided us two key benefits: we recognized we had some opportunities to improve on general and administrative costs, and we saw some inequities that needed to be reviewed and corrected NORTH AMERICAN STUDY PARTICIPANT
We are a top-tier performer relative to our peers, but we noticed the industry is becoming more efficient and we need to constantly look for ways to improve our performance. NORTH AMERICAN STUDY PARTICIPANT
The Value
WHY JOIN THE NGTS STUDY- Quantify performance improvement opportunities through gap analysis on OpEx, personnel cost, personnel work hours, and energy consumption.
- Compare transmission systems with diverse operating configurations, system sizes, terrains, power ratings, products, and complexities.
- Maintain pipeline integrity while reducing costs and ensuring high reliability.
- Determine competitive industry position.
- Establish & track progress of performance targets
- Assess future performance impact of planned capital improvements/modifications.
- Demonstrate performance/capability to financial institutions and security analysts.
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Learn How You Can Participate
Our commitment is to enable client success by delivering data-driven insight into operational excellence and help guide clients to take the steps necessary to accelerate the realization of benefits. Through our patented methodology for normalizing performance data across a broad spectrum of transmission system configurations, we can assess your performance using a number of KPIs, comparing your operations to others on an equitable basis. The resulting data, along with the world’s largest database of energy industry performance metrics, help participants achieve sustainably operational excellence. Join others who leverage the NGTS Study to guide them to higher levels of sustainable business performance and cost optimization.
A Foundation for Effective Comparative Performance Analysis and Decision Support
We prioritize the integrity and confidentiality of participant-submitted data and rigorously review that data before benchmarking begins. Then, we employ our normalization process and benchmarking methodology to provide valuable and trusted peer group comparisons that deliver meaningful KPIs. Finally, our staff of senior consultants apply their deep industry experience to develop practical insight and recommendations to enable your success.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQ)
A: The Worldwide Natural Gas Transmission System Performance Analysis (NGTS Study) uses Solomon’s proprietary Comparative Performance Analysis™ (CPA™) methodology to provide a comprehensive and normalized assessment of transmission system performance, improvement opportunities and estimates of potential cost optimization relative to best performers and selected peer groups. The NGTS Study is designed to help natural gas transmission system operators improve performance in a sustainable manner. Our experts, benchmark performance with normalized comparisons of key KPIs–including cost, pipeline integrity, maintenance, reliability, workforce effectiveness, and efficiency–to deliver clear, actionable insights.
A: Solomon experts understand all transmission systems are different. To successfully compare operational performance between these diverse systems, operating data is analyzed using three divisors: volume-length, diameter-length, and, more significantly, Equivalent Pipeline Complexity (EPC™). EPC normalizes measured pipeline performance data across a broad spectrum of transmission system configurations, providing an equitable basis for comparing diverse sets of systems.
Unlike other industry metrics and volume divisors, our patented EPC divisor accounts for the physical design and operational characteristics of each facility (i.e., pipeline length and diameter, number of compressor stations, right-of-way lengths, and meter regulator stations). A volume-based divisor will show large-diameter pipelines are the best performers (Figure 1). On the other hand, Solomon’s EPC will show the same pipeline “A” as only a 3rd quartile performer (Figure 2.). This “apples-to-apples” comparison enables more accurate identification of the areas where your transmission systems could improve.
A: The NGTS Study assess the following areas of performance:
- Operations, technical support, and administrative costs
- Maintenance costs and equipment utilization
- Pipeline integrity, inspection practices, and associated costs
- Personnel effectiveness
- Compressor unit reliability
- Other safety and reliability indicators
A: EPC (Equivalent Pipeline Complexity) is a patented regression analysis developed of key pipeline system characteristics that could best predict manageable non-volume-related expenditures (MNVE) for any natural gas transmission system. EPC allows the comparison of diverse pipelines systems by normalizes bias in measured pipeline performance.
A: Solomon uses normalized comparison and historical databases of performance metrics to analyze and report opportunities on program management, facility modification, condition monitoring, and repairs/reconditioning/replacement.
A: In most Solomon studies, an energy efficiency metric—Energy Intensity Index™ (EII®)—is provided based on a combination of factors that drive energy consumption for that industry. The complexities of energy utilization in the natural gas transmission industry make the possibility of an energy index for each pipeline system unlikely. However, a valid correlation was successfully developed to determine the average heat rates for each prime mover type in the study to calculate energy efficiency.
A: The NGTS Study covers onshore natural gas transmission pipeline systems. The study scope includes metering at custody transfer, pipeline operations, and compression. Related underground storage site facilities and operating costs are excluded from the study. Gathering systems and offshore pipeline systems are generally not included, but provisions can be made to include them if they are an integral part of your cost structure, and the facilities represent less than 5% of the total cost of operating the business unit. Liquefied natural gas (LNG) facilities and natural gas processing facilities are not included in the study.
FEATURED INSIGHT
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