New Technology to Enhance Pipeline Safety

Novel program allows companies to demonstrate innovations in real-world situations with industry partners.

Calgary, Alberta, September 19, 2017 – Pipeline safety is a priority for the entire oil and gas industry. Recent advancements in technology have significantly improved certain aspects of both leak detection and prevention. Alberta Innovates is partnering with TransCanada Corporation and Enbridge Inc. to deploy and test an innovative real-time pipeline monitoring and leak detection technology developed by Alberta-based Hifi Engineering (Hifi) on their oil pipelines in Canada and the United States.

The Alberta Small Business Innovation and Research Initiative (ASBIRI), offered by Alberta Innovates, supports this industry partnership. ASBIRI provides Alberta-based small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with direct market access through partnerships with the industry – resulting in economic impact through company growth. Hifi is the first company to access this program.

Hifi’s patented High Fidelity Dynamic Sensing (HDS™) technology has the capability to detect various events and leaks with greater sensitivity than existing leak detection systems can provide. Hifi plans to build and manufacture this technology in Alberta to support the monitoring of thousands of kilometers of pipeline worldwide. Hifi will use Baker Hughes’, a GE company, patented Predix™ industrial Internet software platform to integrate and display the real-time data from the Hifi HDS™ technology to Enbridge and TransCanada. The fiber-optic technology will be tested at locations on the Keystone Pipeline, at Hardisty, Alberta, and Houston, Texas, in addition to Enbridge’s new Norlite Pipeline that went into service this year.

The Alberta Small Business Innovation and Research Initiative (ASBIRI) provides Alberta’s small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) access to real industry problems. Through partnerships with industry, SMEs gain direct access to market needs and resources that will support the commercialization of novel technological solutions while simultaneously generating material risk-weighted returns to Alberta based on economic, social and environmental metrics.

Quotes

“We’re proud to help homegrown HiFi Engineering bring their new leak-detection technology to some of the biggest players in the oil-and-gas industry. Together we are growing our economy, creating new jobs and ensuring Alberta continues to be the energy and environmental leader the world needs for the 21st century.”
– Deron Bilous, Minister of Alberta Economic Development and Trade

“Alberta Innovates is excited about the value Hifi Engineering can offer the pipeline industry. The ASBIRI program offers Alberta innovators direct access to markets through industry partnerships that support testing and validation of new ideas and inventions. Protecting the environment while simultaneously sustaining and supporting further growth in a key industry sector is critically important to Albertans.”
– Laura Kilcrease, CEO of Alberta Innovates

“We are very pleased to be part of the ASBIRI program and collaborating with Enbridge and TransCanada. Hifi is ready to showcase our HDS technology performance on these projects to prove our technology is indeed world class, outperforms other alternatives, and is ready to assist the industry in path to improved safety.”
– Steven Koles, Hifi President and Chief Executive Officer

“We are looking forward to seeing Hifi’s technology perform on our Norlite Pipeline. We understand this will be one of the longest installations of Hifi technology to-date, and we are looking forward to a successful collaboration with Hifi as they optimize and refine their system for real-world monitoring of pipelines. We are hopeful this technology can provide Enbridge with enhanced leak detection capability and complement performance of our current systems and multi-layered approach to pipeline safety.”
– Linda Comand, Enbridge Vice President Technology and Information Services Liquids Pipelines

“This is another important step in our collaborative relationship with Enbridge and the Government of Alberta to rigorously test new technology and implement it on our pipelines when it can add another layer to our comprehensive pipeline safety and leak detection program. We look forward to seeing how Hifi’s unique sensing technology performs in real time as we continue to evaluate how it can be deployed most effectively on our pipeline systems in the future.”
– Erik Tatarchuk, TransCanada Vice President of Liquids Pipeline Operations

Hifi Engineering is a privately held Canadian company, with minority ownership from Enbridge and Cenovus, specializing in the research, development, supply and commercial operation of next generation fiber optic sensing technologies primarily used to monitor gas and fluid flow in oil and gas wells, and preventative leak detection for pipelines. Headquartered in Calgary, Alberta, Hifi currently has a number of commercialized products, including its HDS™ MiCro tool offering for downhole flow applications, and HDS™ MaCro system for permanent monitoring of pipelines and reservoirs. For more information, visit www.hifieng.com.

Enbridge Inc. is North America’s premier energy infrastructure company with strategic business platforms that include an extensive network of crude oil, liquids and natural gas pipelines, regulated natural gas distribution utilities and renewable power generation. The Company safely delivers an average of 2.8 million barrels of crude oil each day through its Mainline and Express Pipeline; accounts for approximately 65% of U.S.-bound Canadian crude oil exports; and moves approximately 20% of all natural gas consumed in the U.S. serving key supply basins and demand markets. The Company’s regulated utilities serve approximately 3.5 million retail customers in Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick and New York State. Enbridge also has a growing involvement in electricity infrastructure with interests in more than 2,500 MW of net renewable generating capacity in North America and an expanding offshore wind portfolio in Europe. The Company has ranked on the Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations index for the past eight years; its common shares trade on the Toronto and New York stock exchanges under the symbol ENB. Life takes energy and Enbridge exists to fuel people’s quality of life. For more information, visit www.enbridge.com.

TransCanada Corporation: With more than 65 years’ experience, TransCanada is a leader in the responsible development and reliable operation of North American energy infrastructure including natural gas and liquids pipelines, power generation and gas storage facilities. TransCanada operates a network of natural gas pipelines that extends more than 91,500 kilometres (56,900 miles), tapping into virtually all major gas supply basins in North America. TransCanada is the continent’s leading provider of gas storage and related services with 653 billion cubic feet of storage capacity. A large independent power producer, TransCanada currently owns or has interests in approximately 6,200 megawatts of power generation in Canada and the United States. TransCanada is also the developer and operator of one of North America’s leading liquids pipeline systems that extends over 4,300 kilometres (2,700 miles), connecting growing continental oil supplies to key markets and refineries. TransCanada’s common shares trade on the Toronto and New York stock exchanges under the symbol TRP. Visit TransCanada.com to learn more.

Alberta Innovates is a provincially-funded Corporation with a mandate to deliver 21st century solutions for the most compelling challenges facing Albertans. We do this by building on our province’s research and technology development strengths in the core sectors of health, environment, energy, food and fibre and platforms such as artificial intelligence, nanotechnology, and omics. We are working with our partners to diversify Alberta’s economy, improve our environmental performance and enhance our well-being through research and innovation. Visit us at albertainnovates.ca.

For more information, contact Dwayne Brunner, Manager of Media Relations Alberta Innovates | dwayne.brunner@albertainnovates.ca | Cell: 403.619.4556