VALDEZ, AK – July 7, 2000 - An instrumentation "pig" launched by Alyeska to determine the condition of the pipeline has arrived at its final destination damaged and with a ring of metal wrapped around it.  Engineers have confirmed that it is a check valve seat ring that was probably dislodged as the pig made its pass through the pipe.   The pig, launched from Pump Station 4 on June 26th, arrived at the end of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline in Valdez Friday, July 7th.  Engineers and technicians awaiting the arrival of the data-collecting device discovered the damage and the check valve seat ring around the pig upon its arrival.

Though there is no external indication of damage to the pipe as a result of this incident, Bill Howitt, a senior vice president of Alyeska has mobilized a team that will visually inspect each of the 38 check valves between Pump Station 4 and Valdez. "We of course will use other technology to determine if the dislodging of the seat check valve has caused damage to the pipe, but getting crews out there immediately gives us a head start on minimizing any potential harm to the environment. We would rather err on the side of safety than sit on the sidelines waiting for information to come to us," Howitt said.

Engineers are working to determine what caused the seat check valve to become displaced, what if any damage has been done internally and externally to the pipe and valve, and what information obtained from the pig may have been lost due to the damage.

Alyeska routinely uses several different types of pigs to collect information on the 800-mile pipeline that winds its way across Alaska from the Prudhoe Bay fields on the North Slope to the end of the pipeline in Valdez.  Information collected during pigging is just one tool Alyeska uses to determine the condition and integrity of the pipeline.  

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