Texas Probes Targa Failure to Swiftly Report Big Gas Release

Texas is investigating why pipeline operator Targa Resources Corp. failed to report an unexpected release of tons of natural gas within 24 hours, as required by state regulations.

Targa disclosed the incident two weeks after it happened and within eight hours after Bloomberg emailed the Houston-based company a satellite image that appears to show a significant cloud of methane near one of its compressor stations in Midland County, Texas. The Jan. 20 incident in the heart of the Permian Basin, the world’s largest shale oilfield, wasn’t reported to state regulators until 4:42 p.m. local time on Feb. 3.

Companies operating in Texas must promptly notify regulators when a malfunction causes the ...