Transmission and gathering operations
Scheduling, allocations and back-office functions for leading US and Canadian natural gas gathering and transmission companies, in both regulated and unregulated environments.
Independent consulting · Houston, Texas
Midstream and LNG operations consulting, from pre-FID through steady state.
Blue Quail Services is the independent practice of J. Bartley, who has spent more than forty years in oil and gas — transmission and gathering operations, LNG liquefaction and regasification, control room management, asset integrity, and the handover from EPC to the operating company.
jeb@bluequailservices.com 713 562 6125 Houston, Texas
- 40+
- Years in oil & gas
- 24,000 mi
- Gathering & transmission, US
- 8,700 mi
- Pipeline, Canada
- 20+
- Processing facilities
- 5
- Continents, LNG work
Services
Operations, integrity and the systems that support them
Engagements range from a short assessment to a full ready-for-operations program. The focus is consistent: what the asset has to do each day, and whether the people, procedures and systems around it are able to do it.
LNG liquefaction and regasification
Business and functional process design for regasification and liquefaction terminals on five continents, covering engineering, risk, operations, maintenance and commercial. Led the reorganization of a national oil company's liquefaction capability and the supporting processes for gas production, processing, terminal optimization and by-product sales.
Control room management
Supervision of daily operations across 24,000 miles of US gathering and transmission, and 8,700 miles of pipe with more than 20 processing facilities in Canada — raw gas, sweet gas and molten sulphur service.
Ready for operations
Handover from EPC to the operating company, inclusive of processes, procedures, applications, metadata, document management, management of change and EAM.
Asset integrity and maintenance
Configuration and use of EAM applications to manage regulatory inspections, preventive and predictive maintenance, corrosion monitoring and one-calls, with the underlying data left usable for analytics.
Throughput optimization
Work with three supermajors and independent pipeline companies across North America to optimize throughput, DRA usage and energy consumption across pipelines and terminals.
Business process re-engineering
Led the effort that increased customer satisfaction and reduced costs for a Canadian gathering and transmission corporation.
Field operations
Supervision of measurement, maintenance and pigging for a North American pipeline division, including right-of-way classification, reporting and encroachment monitoring.
Project phase
Experience at every stage of the asset lifecycle
Work delivered in pre-FID, post-FID, commissioning and operating environments — each phase informed by having lived with the decisions made in the one before it.
Phase 01
Pre-FID
Operating philosophy, staffing and process design established and costed before the investment decision.
Phase 02
Post-FID
Business and functional design carried into execution, with operating systems scoped alongside the facilities.
Phase 03
Commissioning
Ready-for-operations handover: procedures, management of change, document control, EAM and metadata.
Phase 04
Operating
Control room management, integrity programs and optimization once the asset is in service.
About
J. Bartley, Principal
J. Bartley began as a field worker and advanced through positions of increasing responsibility with oil and gas pipeline companies into functional leadership. Most recently he led midstream and LNG engagements within the pipeline and LNG groups of a global consulting firm.
His area of focus is midstream and LNG, including design, construction, maintenance, risk and asset integrity, along with the business systems and operations that support those areas. Based in Houston, he has provided midstream and LNG related services in Australia, Russia, China, the Middle East, Africa, South America and North America, in pre-FID, post-FID, commissioning and operating environments. He also supports pipeline integrity and operations in the LDC arena.
Blue Quail Services is the independent practice through which that work is now offered directly.
- Industry service
- Past member, Board of Directors, North American Energy Standards Board (NAESB), and several industry organizations.
- Regulatory
- DOE, DOT, PHMSA and NEB requirements as they apply to operations, integrity and reporting.
- Certifications
- Certified in AI, generative AI and agentic AI, applied to maintenance, analytics and operational data.
- Location
- Houston, Texas. Available for engagements in North America and internationally.
Areas of expertise
Functional and industry experience
Functional
- Control centre
- Product scheduling
- Measurement
- Product allocations
- Asset maintenance
- Asset integrity
- Project management
- Operating technologies
- Liquefaction and vaporizers
- DOE, DOT, PHMSA, NEB
Industry
- Oil & gas transmission
- Midstream operations
- LNG operations
- Natural gas transportation
- Ready for operations
- Terminal operations & maintenance
- LNG processes
- Pipeline optimization
- Marine terminalling
Global experience
Midstream and LNG services delivered across seven regions
- North AmericaPipelines, LNG, LDC
- South AmericaTerminals and pipelines
- AustraliaLiquefaction
- Middle EastLiquefaction and export
- RussiaGas transmission
- ChinaRegasification
- AfricaLNG operations
Contact
Discuss an engagement
Initial scoping conversations are without charge. If the work falls outside his experience, he will say so.
- Emailjeb@bluequailservices.com
- Phone713 562 6125
- OfficeHouston, Texas