{"operation":"document","citation":"CPF 220111009","title":"TEXAS EASTERN TRANSMISSION, LP (SPECTRA ENERGY PARTNERS, LP) — Notice of Probable Violation","source_type":"enforcement","agency":"Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration","status":"historical","official":true,"published_on":"2011-10-07","effective_on":null,"summary":"CLOSED notice of probable violation citing 192.465(d).","machine_formats":{"json":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-220111009.json","markdown":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-220111009.md"},"app_url":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-220111009","source_url":"https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-data/case/220111009","body":"Notice of Probable Violation involving TEXAS EASTERN TRANSMISSION, LP (SPECTRA ENERGY PARTNERS, LP). PHMSA's enforcement data identifies the cited regulation as 192.465(d). The case was opened on 2011-10-07 and is reported as closed as of 2012-05-18. Proposed civil penalty: $19,000. Assessed civil penalty: $19,000. Open the official case record for notices, responses, orders, and the latest status.\n\nOfficial case documents:\n\n220111009_Final Order_05182012.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/220111009/220111009_Final%20Order_05182012.pdf\n\n220111009_Final Order_05182012_text.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/220111009/220111009_Final%20Order_05182012_text.pdf\n\n220111009_NOPV PCP_10072011.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/220111009/220111009_NOPV%20PCP_10072011.pdf\n\n220111009_NOPV PCP_10072011_text.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/220111009/220111009_NOPV%20PCP_10072011_text.pdf\n\n220111009_Operator Response_NOPV_PCP_11042011.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/220111009/220111009_Operator%20Response_NOPV_PCP_11042011.pdf\n\n220111009_Final Order_05182012_text.pdf\n\nMAY 18 2012\nMr. Gregory L. Ebel\nPresident and Chief Executive Officer\nSpectra Energy Corporation\n5400 Westheimer Court\nHouston, TX 77056\nRe: CPF No. 2-2011-1009\nDear Mr. Ebel:\nEnclosed please find the Final Order issued in the above-referenced case. It makes a finding\nof violation and assesses a civil penalty of $19,000. This is to acknowledge receipt of\npayment of the full penalty amount, by wire transfer, dated November 4, 2011. This\nenforcement action is now closed. Service of the Final Order by certified mail is deemed\neffective upon the date of mailing, or as otherwise provided under 49 C.F.R. § 190.5.\nThank you for your cooperation in this matter.\nSincerely,\nJeffrey D. Wiese\nAssociate Administrator\nfor Pipeline Safety\nEnclosure\ncc: Mr. J. A. (Andy) Drake, Vice President, Asset Integrity, Spectra Energy\nMr. Wayne T. Lemoi, Director, Southern Region, OPS\nMr. Alan Mayberry, Deputy Associate Administrator for Field Operations, OPS\nCERTIFIED MAIL - RETURN RECEIPT REQUESTED\n\n\n\nU.S. DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION\nPIPELINE AND HAZARDOUS MATERIALS SAFETY ADMINISTRATION\nOFFICE OF PIPELINE SAFETY\nWASHINGTON, D.C. 20590\n____________________________________\n)\nIn the Matter of )\n)\nTexas Eastern Transmission, LP, ) CPF No. 2-2011-1009\n)\nRespondent. )\n____________________________________)\nFINAL ORDER\nFrom May - July 2011, pursuant to 49 U.S.C. § 60117, a representative of the Pipeline and\nHazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), Office of Pipeline Safety (OPS),\nconducted an on-site pipeline safety inspection of the facilities and records of Texas Eastern\nTransmission, LP (TETLP or Respondent) in Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee, and Kentucky.\nTETLP, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Spectra Energy Corporation, operates a system of\napproximately 1,700 miles of gas transmission pipeline originating in the Gulf Coast region and\nterminating in Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York.1\nAs a result of the inspection, the Director, Southern Region, OPS (Director), issued to\nRespondent, by letter dated October 7, 2011, a Notice of Probable Violation and Proposed Civil\nPenalty (Notice). In accordance with 49 C.F.R. § 190.207, the Notice proposed finding that\nTETLP violated 49 C.F.R. § 192.465 and proposed assessing a civil penalty of $19,000 for the\nalleged violation.\nTETLP responded to the Notice by letter dated November 4, 2011 (Response). The company did\nnot contest the allegation of violation and paid the proposed civil penalty of $19,000, as provided\nin 49 C.F.R. § 190.227. Payment of the penalty serves to close the case with prejudice to\nRespondent.\nFINDING OF VIOLATION\nIn its Response, TETLP did not contest the allegation in the Notice that it violated 49 C.F.R. Part\n192, as follows:\nItem 1: The Notice alleged that Respondent violated 49 C.F.R. § 192.465(d), which states:\n1 Spectra Energy Corp. 10-K, 2010, at 6. See, http://www.spectraenergy.com/Operations/North-America-\nTransmission/Assets/.\n\n\n\n2\n§ 192.465 External corrosion control: Monitoring.\n(a) Each pipeline that is under cathodic protection must be tested at\nleast once each calendar year, but with intervals not exceeding 15 months,\nto determine whether the cathodic protection meets the requirements of\n§ 192.463. . . .\n(d) Each operator shall take prompt remedial action to correct any\ndeficiencies indicated by the monitoring.\nThe Notice alleged that Respondent violated 49 C.F.R. § 192.465(d) by failing to take prompt\nremedial action to correct deficiencies indicated by the company’s external corrosion monitoring\nprogram. Specifically, the Notice alleged that TETLP identified low cathodic protection (CP)\nreadings at two test stations but failed to take prompt remedial action.\nRespondent found low CP readings on Line 14 (Clinton-Kosciusko segment) and Line 10\n(Kosciusko-Egypt segment) on July 26, 2009, and August 6, 2009, respectively. Despite finding\nsuccessive low readings on Line 14 during subsequent inspections on April 20, 2010, and April\n4, 2011, Respondent had taken no remedial action by the time of PHMSA’s May 11, 2011\ninspection. TETLP also recorded successive low readings on Line 10 during subsequent\ninspections on March 31, 2010, and April 13, 2011, but failed to take remedial action by the time\nof the PHMSA inspection. In both instances, Respondent failed to remediate external corrosion\nfor nearly two years following initial discovery of the deficiencies, in violation of the regulatory\nrequirement that such problems be corrected “promptly.”\nRespondent did not contest this allegation of violation. Accordingly, based upon a review of all\nof the evidence, I find that Respondent violated 49 C.F.R. § 192.465(d) by failing to take prompt\nremedial action to correct any deficiencies indicated by corrosion control monitoring.\nThis finding of violation will be considered a prior offense in any subsequent enforcement action\ntaken against Respondent.\nASSESSMENT OF PENALTY\nUnder 49 U.S.C. § 60122, Respondent is subject to an administrative civil penalty not to exceed\n$100,000 per violation for each day of the violation, up to a maximum of $1,000,000 for any\nrelated series of violations. In determining the amount of a civil penalty under\n49 U.S.C. § 60122 and 49 C.F.R. § 190.225, I must consider the following criteria: the nature,\ncircumstances, and gravity of the violation, including adverse impact on the environment; the\ndegree of Respondent’s culpability; the history of Respondent’s prior offenses; the Respondent’s\nability to pay the penalty and any effect that the penalty may have on its ability to continue doing\nbusiness; and the good faith of Respondent in attempting to comply with the pipeline safety\nregulations. In addition, I may consider the economic benefit gained from the violation without\nany reduction because of subsequent damages, and such other matters as justice may require.\nThe Notice proposed a total civil penalty of $19,000 for the violation cited above.\nItem 1: The Notice proposed a civil penalty of $19,000 for Respondent’s violation of\n49 C.F.R. § 192.465(d), for failing to take prompt remedial action to correct low CP readings\n\n\n\n3\nidentified by corrosion control monitoring. TETLP neither contested the allegation nor\npresented any evidence or argument justifying elimination of the proposed penalty. Section\n192.465 is intended to minimize the risk of external corrosion that can cause failures and injuries\nto people and the environment, by requiring operators to take prompt and effective action to\naddress integrity threats. Accordingly, having reviewed the record and considered the\nassessment criteria, I assess Respondent a civil penalty of $19,000 for violating\n49 C.F.R. § 192.465(d), which amount has already been paid by Respondent.\nThe terms and conditions of this Final Order are effective upon service in accordance with\n49 C.F.R. § 190.5.\n___________________________________ __________________________\nJeffrey D. Wiese Date Issued\nAssociate Administrator\nfor Pipeline Safety","truncated":false,"body_characters":8157}