South Jersey Gas and Elizabethtown Gas “Make Every Day a Safe Day” with Technology and Infrastructure Investments

Newsroom > South Jersey Industries News

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FOLSOM, NJ, December 28, 2021 – With safety as a core value, SJI (NYSE: SJI) continues investing in infrastructure projects and cutting-edge technology to reduce leaks and service disruptions, as well as improve emergency preparedness.

This year, SJI launched a new Safety Management System to manage and measure safety performance across operations consistently. As part of the efforts to enhance safety, South Jersey Gas and Elizabethtown Gas implemented virtual reality training modules that allow field crews to simulate a wide variety of critical response situations. 

 

South Jersey Gas and Elizabethtown Gas were recognized by the American Gas Association for their outstanding safety performances. Both utilities ramped up their training programs with first responder agencies, providing more than two dozen in-person and virtual training sessions. These sessions covered topics on natural gas safety and improved channels of communication with local emergency response agencies in the gas service territories.

In addition to boosting training opportunities for employees and community partners, SJI continues to improve safety, reliability and reduce carbon emissions through infrastructure investment programs. Highlights include:

 
Pipe Replacement
Through 2020, South Jersey Gas has replaced 804 miles of gas main as part of the Accelerated Infrastructure Replacement Program (AIRP), currently in its second phase. AIRP targets replacing aging cast iron and bare steel in the South Jersey Gas distribution infrastructure to ensure system reliability and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. South Jersey Gas expects to replace all remaining bare steel and cast iron in its system by the end of 2021. 
The Elizabethtown Gas Infrastructure Investment Program (IIP) also targets replacing vintage cast iron, bare steel, ductile iron, copper, and vintage plastic mains and services. This $300 million five-year program began on July 1, 2019 and will replace approximately 250 miles of main. From 2019 through 2020, Elizabethtown Gas replaced 89.9 miles of main.
 

Excess Flow Valves
In recent years, Elizabethtown Gas and South Jersey Gas collectively installed approximately 300,000 excess flow valves (EFVs) as part of our infrastructure enhancement programs. In the event of damage to a gas line, EFV’s can stop leaks by automatically shutting off service. These valves played an important safety role by automatically shutting off gas service to damaged homes during the tornado that hit Gloucester County, NJ in early September 2021.
 



New Sentury Pump Station
In July of 2021, South Jersey Gas cut the ribbon on the New Sentury Pump Station in South Harrison Twp, NJ. This $69 million infrastructure project improves reliability for customers by maintaining consistent pressure in the gas distribution lines in the event of severe weather or a man-made disruption.  
 

About SJI

SJI (NYSE: SJI), an energy infrastructure holding company based in Folsom, NJ, delivers energy services to customers through two primary subsidiaries: SJI Utilities (SJIU) and SJI Energy Enterprises (SJIEE). SJIU houses the company’s regulated natural gas utility operations, delivering safe, reliable and affordable natural gas to more than 700,000 residential, commercial and industrial customers across New Jersey via its South Jersey Gas and Elizabethtown Gas subsidiaries. SJIEE houses the company’s non-utility operations primarily focused on clean energy development and decarbonization via renewable energy production and energy management activities. Visit sjindustries.com for more information about SJI and its subsidiaries.

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