UGI is hoping for the new pipeline that will allow residents and busines
ses in Tunkhannock to utilize natural gas for the first time to be finished by late February.
The utility company first broke ground on the Tunkhannock GET Gas project Oct. 16 during a ceremony at the Wyoming County Emergency Operations Center.
The Wyoming County Chamber of Commerce secured a $1 million grant from Pennsylvania’s Department of Community and Economic Development to fund the initiative.
Linde Corp. was contracted to install 18,000 feet of 8” high-density pipe in Tunkhannock. The initial phase of the project promised natural gas access to 88 homes and 30 businesses in the area. When all phases are completed, 900 homes and 150 businesses will have access.
The pipeline is “over halfway completed,” according to UGI Director of Business Development Don Brominski.
“Most of Harrison Street is done and we’re working down Sunnyside [Road] now, and then the gate station is to follow,” Brominski said. “The gate station is the interconnect point from where we take our gas supply.”
This interconnect point is just north of Shadowbrook Resort, he added.
The goal for the gate station to be completed is some time in March.
“With all large construction projects, if something comes up which we’re unaware, it could be pushed, but that would be our goal,” he said. “If all goes as planned, were hoping to gas up in March.”
Since the pipeline will likely be finished before the gate station, Brominski said UGI is advising people interested in utilizing the new service to get quotes from HVAC contractors in the meantime, but wait to install new equipment until they know there’s gas on the line.
“When the station is completed, that’s when we introduce natural gas and can start running services to customers,” he said.
In the next phase, UGI plans to start running gas lines down additional streets in Tunkhannock. Brominski said this phase will hopefully begin late this summer.
“I would say that’s the majority of streets in Tunkhannock,” Brominski said.
UGI laid out proposed plans for this phase in a map. The yellow line indicates the current phase, while the red, green and blue lines show different sized gas mains proposed for later this year.
Brominski said UGI is pleased with the progress on the pipeline so far, which residents say hasn’t caused too much of a disturbance.
“We’ve received feedback that residents were happy that there were minimal disruptions to traffic,” he said. “I know there were a lot of concerns in the beginning about that. People were happy with Linde and how they worked with the neighbors.”
SOURCE: Wyoming County Press Examiner
