# NATURAL GAS PIPELINE CO OF AMERICA (KMI) — Notice of Probable Violation

**Citation:** CPF 320101001  
**Type / status:** enforcement / historical  
**Agency:** Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration  
**Effective:** Not stated  
**Published:** 2010-02-25

CLOSED notice of probable violation citing 192.201(a), 192.455(a), 192.459, 192.481(a), 192.603(b), 192.605(c)(4), 192.615(b)(3), 192.735(a), 192.743(a).

## Document text

Notice of Probable Violation involving NATURAL GAS PIPELINE CO OF AMERICA (KMI). PHMSA's enforcement data identifies the cited regulations as 192.201(a),  192.455(a),  192.459,  192.481(a),  192.603(b),  192.605(c)(4),  192.615(b)(3),  192.735(a),  192.743(a). The case was opened on 2010-02-25 and is reported as closed as of 2011-06-24. Open the official case record for notices, responses, orders, and the latest status.

Official case documents:

320101001_FinalOrder_06242011.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/320101001/320101001_FinalOrder_06242011.pdf

320101001_FinalOrder_06242011_text.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/320101001/320101001_FinalOrder_06242011_text.pdf

320101001_NOPV PCO_02252010.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/320101001/320101001_NOPV%20PCO_02252010.pdf

320101001_NOPV PCO_02252010_text.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/320101001/320101001_NOPV%20PCO_02252010_text.pdf

320101001_Opr Response_03242010.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/320101001/320101001_Opr%20Response_03242010.pdf

320101001_FinalOrder_06242011_text.pdf

JUN 24 2011
Mr. Dwayne Burton
Vice President – Gas Pipeline Operations
Natural Gas Pipeline Company of America LLC
500 Dallas Street, Suite 1000
Houston, TX 77002
Re: CPF No. 3-2010-1001
Dear Mr. Burton:
Enclosed please find the Final Order issued in the above-referenced case. It makes a finding of
violation and finds that Natural Gas Pipeline Company of America LLC has completed the
actions specified in the Notice to comply with the pipeline safety regulations. Therefore, this
case is now closed. Service of the Final Order by certified mail is deemed effective upon the
date of mailing, or as otherwise provided under 49 C.F.R. § 190.5.
Thank you for your cooperation in this matter.
Sincerely,
Jeffrey D. Wiese
Associate Administrator
for Pipeline Safety
Enclosure
cc: Alan Mayberry, Deputy Associate Administrator for Field Operations, Pipeline Safety
David Barrett, Director, PHMSA Central Region
CERTIFIED MAIL - RETURN RECEIPT REQUESTED [7005 1160 0001 0075 9589]



U.S. DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
PIPELINE AND HAZARDOUS MATERIALS SAFETY ADMINISTRATION
OFFICE OF PIPELINE SAFETY
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20590
____________________________________
)
In the Matter of )
)
Natural Gas Pipeline Company ) CPF No. 3-2010-1001
of America LLC )
)
Respondent. )
____________________________________)
FINAL ORDER
On various dates between August 10 and October 29, 2009, pursuant to 49 U.S.C. § 60117, a
representative of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), Office
of Pipeline Safety (OPS), conducted an on-site pipeline safety inspection of the facilities and
records of Natural Gas Pipeline Company of America LLC (NGPA or Respondent) in Minneola,
Kansas, Great Bend, Kansas, Glasco, Kansas, Beatrice, Nebraska, and Geneseo, Illinois.
Respondent operates a large natural gas pipeline system extending approximately 9,122 miles
across several states.
As a result of the inspection, the Director, Central Region, OPS (Director), issued to Respondent,
by letter dated February 25, 2010, a Notice of Probable Violation and Proposed Compliance
Order (Notice). In accordance with 49 C.F.R. § 190.207, the Notice proposed finding that
NGPA had committed various violations of 49 C.F.R. Part 192 and proposed ordering
Respondent to take certain measures to correct two of the alleged violations.
FINDING OF VIOLATION
The Notice alleged that Respondent violated 49 C.F.R. Part 192, as follows:
Item 2: The Notice alleged that Respondent violated 49 C.F.R. § 192.455(a), which states in
relevant part:
§ 192.455 – External corrosion control: Buried or submerged pipelines installed
after July 31, 1971.
(a) Except as provided in paragraphs (b), (c), and (f) of this section,
each buried or submerged pipeline installed after July 31, 1971, must be



2
protected against external corrosion, including the following:
(2) It must have a cathodic protection system designed to protect the pipeline in
accordance with this subpart, installed and placed in operation within 1 year after
completion of construction.
Specifically, the Notice alleged that Respondent failed to have cathodic protection on a section
of pipe at the Atkinson Meter Station in the Geneseo area. In its Response, NGPA
acknowledged that the specified section of pipe had been insulated from cathodic protection and
explained that it connected it to cathodic protection immediately after the OPS inspection.
Accordingly, after considering all of the evidence, I find that Respondent violated 49 C.F.R.
§ 192.455(a) by failing to have cathodic protection on a section of pipe at the Atkinson Meter
Station in the Geneseo area.
This finding of violation will be considered a prior offense in any subsequent enforcement action
taken against Respondent.
WITHDRAWAL OF ALLEGATION
Item 1: The Notice alleged that Respondent violated 49 C.F.R. § 192.201(a), which states in
relevant part:
§ 192.201 -- Required capacity of pressure relieving and limiting stations.
(a) Each pressure relief station or pressure limiting station or group of
those stations installed to protect a pipeline must have enough capacity,
and must be set to operate, to insure the following:
(2) In pipelines other than a low pressure distribution system:
(i) If the maximum allowable operating pressure is 60 p.s.i. (414 kPa)
gage or more, the pressure may not exceed the maximum allowable
operating pressure plus 10 percent, or the pressure that produces a
hoop stress of 75 percent of SMYS, whichever is lower;
(ii) If the maximum allowable operating pressure is 12 p.s.i. (83 kPa)
gage or more, but less than 60 p.s.i. (414 kPa) gage, the pressure may
not exceed the maximum allowable operating pressure plus 6 p.s.i. (41
kPa) gage; or
(iii) If the maximum allowable operating pressure is less than 12 p.s.i.
(83 kPa) gage, the pressure may not exceed the maximum allowable
operating pressure plus 50 percent.



3
Specifically, the Notice alleged that Respondent failed to set pressure relief devices to ensure
pressure would not exceed maximum allowable operating pressure (MAOP) plus allowable
build-up at several stations in the Minneola and Great Bend areas. In its Response, NGPA
established that the MAOP was the same upstream and downstream of the regulation facilities to
the point of custody transfer to customer facilities and that to the extent the downstream MAOP
was lower it was relevant to customer facilities only. Therefore, the cited facilities are not
subject to the regulations.
Based upon the foregoing, I hereby order that Item 1 of the Notice be withdrawn.
COMPLIANCE ORDER
The Notice proposed a compliance order with respect to Item 2 in the Notice for violations of 49
C.F.R. § 192.455(a). Under 49 U.S.C. § 60118(a), each person who engages in the
transportation of gas or who owns or operates a pipeline facility is required to comply with the
applicable safety standards established under chapter 601. The Director indicates that with
respect to Item 2, Respondent has reviewed the relevant documentation with OPS and confirmed
that no other sections of pipe in the specified stations are isolated from cathodic protection as
specified in the proposed compliance order.
Accordingly, I find that compliance has been achieved with respect to this violation. Therefore,
the compliance terms proposed in the Notice are not included in this Order.
WARNING ITEMS
With respect to Items 3−9, the Notice alleged probable violations of Part 192 and specifically
considered these to be warning items. The warnings were for:
49 C.F.R. § 192.459 (Item 3) ─ Respondent’s alleged failure to maintain records
of certain exposed pipe inspections;
49 C.F.R. § 192.603(b) (Item 4) ─ Respondent’s alleged failure to maintain
records of emergency response training for personnel in the Great Bend area for
years 2007 or 2008;
49 C.F.R. § 192.605(c) (Item 5) ─ Respondent’s alleged failure to conduct
periodic reviews of the effectiveness of procedures for responding to two
specified abnormal operating condition events;
49 C.F.R. § 192.615(b) (Item 6) ─ Respondent’s alleged failure to review
employee activities following a failure emergency to determine whether the
relevant emergency procedures were effectively followed;



4
49 C.F.R. § 192.743(a) (Item 7) ─ Respondent’s alleged failure perform annual
capacity calculations for pressure relief devices in the Minneola area within the
required interval;
49 C.F.R. § 192.481(a) (Item 8) ─ Respondent’s alleged failure to conduct
atmospheric corrosion monitoring inspections on certain above-ground facilities
in the Minneola, Glasco, and Geneseo areas within the required interval; and
49 C.F.R. § 192.735(a) (Item 9) ─ Respondent’s alleged failure to store two
barrels of combustible materials a safe distance from a compressor building at a
station in the Great Bend area.
NGPA presented information in its Response showing that it had taken certain actions to address
the cited items. If OPS finds a violation of any of these provisions in a subsequent inspection,
Respondent may be subject to future enforcement action.
The terms and conditions of this Final Order are effective upon service in accordance with 49
C.F.R. § 190.5.
___________________________________ __________________________
Jeffrey D. Wiese Date Issued
Associate Administrator
for Pipeline Safety

## Provenance

- Official: Yes
- Source: <https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-data/case/320101001>
- Source ID: `phmsa-enforcement`
- SHA-256: `7665bbd6b4a6fd68ca832dc065a50a36ab5fffa3973cfb05e26e946d80a0b94f`
- Retrieved: 2026-08-20T04:44:44.458Z
- Exported: 2026-08-22T00:53:14.241Z
- Document slug: `phmsa-enforcement-320101001`

### Source metadata

```json
{
  "cpf": "320101001",
  "operator": "NATURAL GAS PIPELINE CO OF AMERICA (KMI)",
  "region": "Central",
  "pipelineType": "GAS INTERSTATE ONSHORE",
  "caseStatus": "CLOSED",
  "citedSections": [
    "192.201(a)",
    "192.455(a)",
    "192.459",
    "192.481(a)",
    "192.603(b)",
    "192.605(c)(4)",
    "192.615(b)(3)",
    "192.735(a)",
    "192.743(a)"
  ],
  "dataAsOf": "08/04/2026 12PM",
  "caseDataAsOf": "2026-08-04",
  "attachmentCount": 5,
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  "extractedAgencyDocumentCount": 1,
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  "jurisdiction": "US",
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}
```
