American Oil and Gas Reporter - December 2016 - 96

VOGA, State Recognize Excellence
Editor's Note: The Virginia Oil & Gas
Association provided the following article.
ABINGDON, VA.-Outstanding achievements by members of the Virginia natural
gas and oil industry were recognized during the second annual awards program
put on by the Virginia Department of
Mines, Minerals and Energy Division of
Gas & Oil, and the Virginia Oil & Gas
Association. The awards banquet was
held Oct. 13, at the Martha Washington
Inn in Abingdon.
The 2015 award for operator of the
year went to CONSOL Energy-CNX Gas
for its initiatives aimed at additional gains
in safety, environmental and cost performance parameters amid the market
downturn. In 2015, CONSOL, Southwest
Virginia's largest gas producer, continued
to advance its core values of safety, compliance and continuous improvement,
which significantly improved operational

performance and reduced costs without
compromising safety.
Virginia Natural Gas received the 2015
Local Distribution Company of the Year
Award for its commitment to safety
through a variety of programs and initiatives such as Steps to Advance Virginia's
Energy (SAVE) plan, an infrastructure
modernization program, as well as its
811 Education Program, which educates
and informs fourth graders and their parents about the importance of calling 811
before starting any digging project.
VNG also teamed with Old Dominion
University to promote awareness of safe
digging practices, providing on-site interactive educational experiences at numerous local sporting events.
The 2015 service provider of the year
was Western Construction Inc. In its affiliation as a contractor for CONSOL,
Western Construction worked on pipeline
installation and-through April-had logged

The Virginia Department of
Mines, Minerals and Energy
Division of Gas & Oil, and the
Virginia Oil & Gas Association
held their annual awards ceremony on Oct. 13, in Abingdon, Va. TOP: CONSOL Energy was named operator of the
year, from left, Rick Cooper,
DMME; Anthony Johnson,
CONSOL; Kevin Elkins, CONSOL; and Ian Landon, VOGA.
MIDDLE: Western Construction Inc. was awarded the
Service Provider of the Year
Award, from left, Landon; Brad
Crabtree, WCI; Eddie Brown,
WCI; Tim McDonald, WCI; Jason Muncy, WCI; and Cooper.
BOTTOM: Virginia Natural Gas
was named local distribution
company of the year, from
left, Cooper; Ken Yagelski,
VNG; George Faatz, VNG; and
Landon.

96 THE AMERICAN OIL & GAS REPORTER

40,567 employee hours without an OSHA
recordable incident. Furthermore, WCI
and its employees recorded zero lost
work days and zero fatalities.
Safety, Innovation, Outreach
The 2015 Safety/Environmental Quality
Award went to Columbia Gas of Virginia
for its sewer safety program, which
focused on identifying and remediating
cross-bore conflicts with natural gas installations and sewer facilities installed
by trenchless excavation. The program
has raised awareness about the subject
with local public works and public officials
as well as employees.
CONSOL received the Develop ment/Innovation Award for several projects, including a new completion technique, single seam isolation, which involves stimulating each coal seam individually. Two other CONSOL innovations
include developing and patenting a technological process that allows users to
monitor and control downhole liquid
levels, and re-engineering gob wellheads
in a way that boosts production.
The 2015 Community Outreach Award
also went to CONSOL for its active community outreach efforts. The company's
program aims to create awareness of the
company, its role in Virginia energy production, impact on the communities in
which it operates, and role as a community
partner. Additional community projects
for which the company has been recognized include its:
* Work with VOGA and the Virginia
Coal & Energy Alliance on a 4-H Energy
Quiz Bowl program to be piloted in Virginia coal field counties;
* Implementation of a hotline for responding to public inquiries as a result
of HB 2058, legislation the 2015 Virginia
General Assembly passed to address the
release of funds held in escrow or suspense
associated with previously pooled coalbed
methane gas wells; and
* Involvement in pipeline safety
awareness events and outreach programs.
Two awards recognized a pair of 2015
partnerships.
Matney Construction was recognized
for its work with CONSOL to improve
processes related to artificial lift system
installations that improved efficiencies
and saved costs in the development of
natural gas resources in Southwest Virginia
during a time of slumping commodity
prices. Additionally, the company's work
with CNX on water hauling trimmed
costs and improved resource management.

American Oil and Gas Reporter - December 2016

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