Explosion, fire shut down Williams natural gas plant in Wyoming (update)
Williams on Wednesday reported an explosion and fire at its natural gas processing facility in Opal, Wyo. It is the second such incident to occur at a Williams facility in less than a month. Williams’ LNG facility in Plymouth, Wa., exploded and caught fire March 31, injuring one employee and leading to a temporary shutdown of the plant. No injuries or property damage were reported in the Opal blast, but the town was evacuated.
Williams said in a statement the explosion damaged one of the plant’s five cryogenic processing trains. The full extent of the damage is not yet known. The Opal facility typically processes 1 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day and produces NGLs.
Friday afternoon update: Williams said the evacuation in Opal was lifted Thursday afternoon, but the plant remains shut. Reuters reported this morning that the fire is still burning. The incident has disrupted nearly 1 billion cubic feet per day of output, according to the company and state regulators. The facility typically transports about 4-5 billion cubic feet per day of natural gas to other states.