Kinder Morgan

The technical program covers pipeline integrity management, in-line inspection (ILI), engineering assessments, geohazards, crack and dent assessment, seam-weld threats, repairs, and hydrogen transportation. Plenary topics include operator guidelines and specifications, technical knowledge management, assessing existing pipelines for hydrogen service, selective seam-weld corrosion, and PHMSA MAOP reconfirmation requirements. Parallel technical tracks address landslide monitoring and pipeline strain; crack characterization and management; ILI applications, analysis, and verification; hard spots; dent assessment; engineering assessment; hydrogen transportation; integrity management; difficult-to-inspect pipelines; materials verification; and repair technologies. Presentations include work on ILI run comparisons, risk-informed assessment choices under the PHMSA Gas Mega Rule, dent engineering critical assessment, non-intrusive pipeline assessment, material testing, and repair qualification. A panel addresses PHMSA repair criteria for hazardous-liquid and gas-transmission pipelines.

The featured presentation and Q&A address sanctions risks in the maritime industry. The discussion is led by a lawyer whose listed experience includes maritime sanctions enforcement, export controls, anti-money-laundering matters, and government investigations. His representative experience includes leading the seizure and forfeiture prosecution of a North Korean cargo vessel suspected of sanctions violations; coordinating maritime sanctions enforcement with the U.S. Coast Guard and Navy; and advising on sanctions and export-control policies, voluntary disclosures to OFAC, BIS, and DOJ, and supply-chain and counterparty risk assessments.

Sessions examine natural gas market fundamentals for AI data center demand, including basin capabilities, rig activity, storage trends, pipeline bottlenecks, competition with LNG exports and other electricity demand, and commercial strategies for procurement, hedging, and risk management. The program also addresses AI and predictive analytics for pipeline nominations, forecasting, capacity management, and gas-flow optimization, plus integration with ERP, ETRM, CRM, and SCADA systems. Infrastructure discussions cover pipeline capacity, reliability and right-of-way; regional transmission, distribution and generation investment; federal-land development models; and the commercial and regulatory structures needed to advance large-load projects. Utility service challenges include pipeline limitations, public perception, permitting, capital requirements, commercial structuring, cost allocation, reliability obligations, and protecting existing customers. A developers roundtable covers demand forecasts versus speculative projects, developer qualifications, speed-to-power and behind-the-meter strategies, gas procurement, community hurdles, and regulatory and policy issues. Other sessions address mobile gas delivery and virtual pipelines, including CNG/LNG solutions for remote or capacity-constrained markets. The keynote considers AI-driven electricity demand, gas and electric utility bottlenecks, regional load growth, and nuclear energy. A Texas-focused panel examines policy, technology, research, planning, permitting, investment, and cross-sector coordination for large-load development, including data centers and advanced manufacturing.