Columbia Gas will invest approximately $33 million to upgrade more than 36 miles of natural gas main lines and 2,500 customer service lines in Southeast Ohio in 2020. This work is part of an ongoing commitment by the company to enhance customer safety with 21 major gas line replacement projects this year.
“We are proactively investing in our infrastructure to ensure customers will continue to have safe and reliable service now and long into the future,” said Columbia Gas President, Dan Creekmur.
Since the gas line replacement program started, the number of leaks throughout Ohio has fallen by 40 percent.
The Southeast Ohio projects are part of the company’s larger 25 year program to invest more than $2 billion to replace over 4,000 miles of pipeline across the state.
Projects are currently in progress with 21 projects scheduled this year. Construction is scheduled in the following areas:
· Athens
· Bellaire (two projects)
· Coal Grove
· East Liverpool
· Gallipolis (two projects)
· Mt. Sterling
· Nelsonville
· Newark
· Newcomerstown (two projects)
· New Lexington
· North Fultonham
· Pennsville
· Portsmouth
· Stratton
· Toronto
· Wellsville
· West Lafayette
· Wintersville
Upon completion, customers will have a fully modernized gas system with added safety features, such as:
Excess flow valves: Customer service lines will have valves which are designed to restrict the flow of natural gas if a service line is damaged or broken.
Exterior meters: Customers with indoor meters will have their meters relocated to the exterior to help first responders locate and shut off gas in an emergency.
Plastic pipe: Specially designed plastic pipe, which has a longer life and requires less maintenance, replaces bare steel and cast iron piping.
Since 2008, Columbia Gas has paid close to $100 million in additional property taxes in Ohio, which directly supports local governments and schools. The support of local communities is a direct result of new investment into gas lines infrastructure that replaces aging, depreciated pipe.
For additional information on the company’s gas line replacement projects, visit www.ColumbiaGasOhio.com/
