# ENBRIDGE GAS OHIO — Warning Letter

- **operation:** document
- **citation:** CPF 12025007WL
- **title:** ENBRIDGE GAS OHIO — Warning Letter
- **source type:** enforcement
- **agency:** Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration
- **status:** historical
- **official:** true
- **published on:** 2025-05-23
- **effective on:** Not available
- **summary:** CLOSED warning letter citing 192.12(c).
- **machine formats:** - **json:** https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-12025007wl.json
- **markdown:** https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-12025007wl.md
- **app url:** https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-12025007wl
- **source url:** https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-data/case/12025007WL
**body:**

Warning Letter involving ENBRIDGE GAS OHIO. PHMSA's enforcement data identifies the cited regulation as 192.12(c). The case was opened on 2025-05-23 and is reported as closed as of 2025-05-23. Open the official case record for notices, responses, orders, and the latest status.

Official case documents:

12025007WL_Operator Response to Notice_06192025_(24-303764).pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/12025007WL/12025007WL_Operator%20Response%20to%20Notice_06192025_(24-303764).pdf

12025007WL_Warning Letter_05232025_(24-303764).pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/12025007WL/12025007WL_Warning%20Letter_05232025_(24-303764).pdf

12025007WL_Warning Letter_05232025_(24-303764)_text.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/12025007WL/12025007WL_Warning%20Letter_05232025_(24-303764)_text.pdf

12025007WL_Warning Letter_05232025_(24-303764)_text.pdf

WARNING LETTER
VIA ELECTRONIC MAIL: michele.harradence@enbridge.com
May 23, 2025
Ms. Michele Harradence
President and Chief Executive Officer
Enbridge Gas Ohio
500 Consumers Road
1201 East 55th Street
Cleveland, Ohio 44103
CPF 1-2025-007-WL
Dear Ms. Harradence:
On May 23, 2024, and from June 11 to June 13, 2024, a representative of the Pipeline and
Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) pursuant to Chapter 601 of 49 United States
Code (U.S.C.) inspected Enbridge Gas Ohio’s (EGO) Stark-Summit Underground Natural Gas
Storage in Stark, Ohio.
As a result of the inspection, it is alleged that you have committed a probable violation of the
Pipeline Safety Regulations, Title 49, Code of Federal Regulations (CFR). The item inspected and
the probable violation is:
1. §192.12 Underground natural gas storage facilities.
(a) …
(c) Procedural manuals. Each operator of a UNGSF must prepare
and follow for each facility one or more manuals of written procedures
for conducting operations, maintenance, and emergency preparedness
and response activities under paragraphs (a) and (b) of this section.
Each operator must keep records necessary to administer such
procedures and review and update these manuals at intervals not
exceeding 15 months, but at least once each calendar year. Each
operator must keep the appropriate parts of these manuals accessible
at locations where UNGSF work is being performed. Each operator



must have written procedures in place before commencing operations
or beginning an activity not yet implemented.
EGO failed to follow its manual of written procedures for conducting activities under § 192.12(b).1
Specifically, EGO failed to follow its Storage Integrity Management Plan (SIMP), Section 33.5.6
Well Closure, during the plug and abandon of Well 1707 Serbian Church #3 which was performed
in April and May 2023.
EGO’s SIMP, Section 33.5.6 required that EGO correct deviations which may threaten isolation
objectives of the plug. It also required EGO to determine the location of groundwater and
hydrocarbon bearing zones penetrated by the well, determine the condition of the well’s casing
and cement through those zones, and prevent communication between those zones from the
plugging operation.
Prior to the plug & abandon of this well, the annulus between the 3.5-inch production casing and
the 5.5-inch intermediate casing had a pressure of 300 psi and gas sample analysis from 3/21/2023
confirmed it to be storage gas.
During the inspection, the Daily Well Work Report pertaining to Well 1707 was reviewed. After
the installation of plug #1 and plug #2, the report noted on 4/19/2023 that the annulus had a
consistent pressure of 5 psi. EGO stated no annulus gas pressure was detected once plug #3 was
installed from depth of 968 feet to 1311 feet. This information indicates that annulus gas pressure
of 5 psi may be due to failure of plug #1 and plug #2 to achieve isolation from the storage
formation. Failure of the plugs was not corrected prior to installation of plug #3 thereby allowing
the possibility of storage gas communication with formations below plug #3.
Additionally, EGO’s Gas Storage – Project Checklist, Project Type: Plug and Abandonment,
section 6.7.2 Storage Zone Isolation required checking the following:
Does the workplan include the condition of the well’s casing and cement across those zones,
(utilizing available well and log records), to prevent communication between any of those
during and after plugging the well.
EGO stated a cement bond log of well 1707 was not done, thereby not utilizing log records in
determining the condition of the well’s cement across groundwater and hydrocarbon bearing
zones.
Therefore, EGO failed to follow its SIMP, Section 33.5.6 Well Closure.
1 §192.12 Underground natural gas storage facilities.
(a) . . .
(b) Depleted hydrocarbon and aquifer reservoir UNGSFs.
(1) . . .
(2) Each UNGSF that uses a depleted hydrocarbon reservoir or an aquifer reservoir for natural gas storage and was
constructed on or before July 18, 2017, must meet the provisions of API RP 1171 (incorporated by
reference, see §192.7), sections 8, 9, 10, and 11, and paragraph (c) of this section, by January 18, 2018, and must
meet all provisions of paragraph (d) of this section by March 13, 2021.



Under 49 U.S.C. § 60122 and 49 CFR § 190.223, you are subject to a civil penalty not to exceed
$272,926 per violation per day the violation persists, up to a maximum of $2,729,245 for a related
series of violations. For violation occurring on or after December 28, 2023 and before December
30, 2024, the maximum penalty may not exceed $266,015 per violation per day the violation
persists, up to a maximum of $2,660,135 for a related series of violations. For violation occurring
on or after January 6, 2023 and before December 28, 2023, the maximum penalty may not exceed
$257,664 per violation per day the violation persists, up to a maximum of $2,576,627 for a related
series of violations. For violation occurring on or after March 21, 2022 and before January 6,
2023, the maximum penalty may not exceed $239,142 per violation per day the violation persists,
up to a maximum of $2,391,142 for a related series of violations. For violation occurring on or
after May 3, 2021 and before March 21, 2022, the maximum penalty may not exceed $225,134
per violation per day the violation persists, up to a maximum of $2,251,334 for a related series of
violations. For violation occurring on or after January 11, 2021 and before May 3, 2021, the
maximum penalty may not exceed $222,504 per violation per day the violation persists, up to a
maximum of $2,225,034 for a related series of violations. For violation occurring on or after July
31, 2019 and before January 11, 2021, the maximum penalty may not exceed $218,647 per
violation per day the violation persists, up to a maximum of $2,186,465 for a related series of
violations.
We have reviewed the circumstances and supporting documents involved in this case, and have
decided not to conduct additional enforcement action or penalty assessment proceedings at this
• We advise you to correct the items) identified in this letter. Failure to do so will result in
Enbridge Gas Ohio being subject to additional enforcement action.
No reply to this letter is required. If you choose to reply, in your correspondence please refer to
CPF 1-2025-007-WL. Be advised that all material you submit in response to this enforcement
action is subject to being made publicly available. If you believe that any portion of your
responsive material qualifies for confidential treatment under 5 U.S.C. § 552(b), along with the
complete original document you must provide a second copy of the document with the portions
you believe qualify for confidential treatment redacted and an explanation of why you believe the
redacted information qualifies for confidential treatment under 5 U.S.C. § 552(b).
Sincerely,
Robert Burrough
Director, Eastern Region, Office of Pipeline Safety
Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration
- **truncated:** false
- **body characters:** 7960
