{"operation":"document","citation":"CPF 220183001","title":"PINE NEEDLE OPERATING COMPANY,LLC — Notice of Probable Violation","source_type":"enforcement","agency":"Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration","status":"historical","official":true,"published_on":"2018-02-27","effective_on":null,"summary":"CLOSED notice of probable violation citing 191.29.","machine_formats":{"json":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-220183001.json","markdown":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-220183001.md"},"app_url":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-220183001","source_url":"https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-data/case/220183001","body":"Notice of Probable Violation involving PINE NEEDLE OPERATING COMPANY,LLC. PHMSA's enforcement data identifies the cited regulation as 191.29. The case was opened on 2018-02-27 and is reported as closed as of 2018-09-24. Proposed civil penalty: $25,000. Assessed civil penalty: $25,000. Open the official case record for notices, responses, orders, and the latest status.\n\nOfficial case documents:\n\n220183001_Final Order_09242018.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/220183001/220183001_Final%20Order_09242018.pdf\n\n220183001_Final Order_09242018_text.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/220183001/220183001_Final%20Order_09242018_text.pdf\n\n220183001_NOPV PCP_02272018.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/220183001/220183001_NOPV%20PCP_02272018.pdf\n\n220183001_NOPV PCP_02272018_text.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/220183001/220183001_NOPV%20PCP_02272018_text.pdf\n\n220183001_Operator Response to Notice_03302018.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/220183001/220183001_Operator%20Response%20to%20Notice_03302018.pdf\n\n220183001_Final Order_09242018_text.pdf\n\nSeptember 24, 2018\nMr. Alan S. Armstrong\nPresident and Chief Executive Officer\nWilliams Companies, Inc.\nOne Williams Center\nTulsa, OK 74172\nRe: CPF No. 2-2018-3001\nDear Mr. Armstrong:\nEnclosed please find the Final Order issued in the above-referenced case to your subsidiary, Pine\nNeedle LNG Company, LLC (Pine Needle). It makes one finding of violation and assesses a\ncivil penalty of $25,000 against Pine Needle. This is to acknowledge receipt of payment of the\nfull penalty amount, by wire transfer, dated July 12, 2018. This enforcement action is now\nclosed. Service of the Final Order by certified mail is effective as provided under 49 C.F.R.\n§ 190.5.\nThank you for your cooperation in this matter.\nSincerely,\nAlan K. Mayberry\nAssociate Administrator\nfor Pipeline Safety\nEnclosure\ncc: Mr. James Urisko, Director, Southern Region, Office of Pipeline Safety, PHMSA\nMr. Larry Legendre, Pipeline Safety and Compliance Manager, Williams Partners, LP,\n2800 Post Oak Boulevard, Houston, Texas 77056\n\n\n\nU.S. DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION\nPIPELINE AND HAZARDOUS MATERIALS SAFETY ADMINISTRATION\nOFFICE OF PIPELINE SAFETY\nWASHINGTON, D.C. 20590\n____________________________________\nIn the Matter of )\nPine Needle LNG Company, LLC, ) CPF No. 2-2018-3001\na subsidiary of Williams Partners, LP, )\n)\n)\n)\nRespondent. )\n____________________________________)\nFINAL ORDER\nFrom June 27 through June 30, 2017, pursuant to 49 U.S.C. § 60117, a representative of the\nPipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), Office of Pipeline Safety\n(OPS), conducted an on-site pipeline safety inspection of the facilities and records of Pine\nNeedle LNG Company, LLC’s (Pine Needle or Respondent) facility in Stokesdale, North\nCarolina. Pine Needle is a subsidiary of Williams Partners, LP (Williams).1 The Stokesdale\nfacility has two LNG containers with a maximum liquefication rate of 20 million cubic feet per\nday (MMcf/d) and a maximum vaporization rate of 400 MMcf/d.2\nAs a result of the inspection, the Director, Southern Region, OPS (Director), issued to\nRespondent, by letter dated February 27, 2018, a Notice of Probable Violation and Proposed\nCivil Penalty (Notice). In accordance with 49 C.F.R. § 190.207, the Notice proposed finding\nthat Pine Needle had violated 49 C.F.R. § 191.29 and proposed assessing a civil penalty of\n$25,000 for the alleged violation.\nWilliams, on behalf of its subsidiary, responded to the Notice by email dated March 30, 2018\n(Response). The company did not contest the allegation of violation and paid the proposed civil\npenalty of $25,000. In accordance with 49 C.F.R. § 190.208(a)(1), such payment authorizes the\nAssociate Administrator to make a finding of violation and to issue this final order without\nfurther proceedings.\n1 Pine Needle LNG Company, LLC, is a subsidiary of Williams Partners, LP, which is a subsidiary of Williams\nCompanies, Inc. See, Williams Companies, Inc., Form 10-K, available at\nhttp://app.quotemedia.com/data/downloadFiling?ref=12075170&type=HTML&symbol=WMB&companyName=Wi\nlliams+Companies+Inc.+%28The%29&formType=10-\nK&formDescription=Annual+report+with+a+comprehensive+overview+of+the+company&dateFiled=2018-02-22\n(last accessed August 9, 2018).\n2 Pipeline Safety Violation Report (Violation Report), (February 1, 2018) (on file with PHMSA), at 1.\n\n\n\nCPF No. 2-2018-3001\nPage 2\nFINDING OF VIOLATION\nIn its Response, Pine Needle did not contest the allegation in the Notice that it violated 49 C.F.R.\nPart 191, as follows:\nItem 1: The Notice alleged that Respondent violated 49 C.F.R. § 191.29, which states:\n§ 191.29 National Pipeline Mapping System.\n(a) Each operator of a gas transmission pipeline or liquefied natural gas\nfacility must provide the following geospatial data to PHMSA for that\npipeline or facility:\n(1) Geospatial data, attributes, metadata and transmittal letter\nappropriate for use in the National Pipeline Mapping System. Acceptable\nformats and additional information are specified in the NPMS Operator\nStandards Manual available at www.npms.phmsa.dot.gov or by contacting\nthe PHMSA Geographic Information Systems Manager at (202) 366-4595.\n(2) The name of and address for the operator.\n(3) The name and contact information of a pipeline company employee,\nto be displayed on a public Web site, who will serve as a contact for\nquestions from the general public about the operator's NPMS data.\n(b) The information required in paragraph (a) of this section must be\nsubmitted each year, on or before March 15, representing assets as of\nDecember 31 of the previous year. If no changes have occurred since the\nprevious year's submission, the operator must comply with the guidance\nprovided in the NPMS Operator Standards manual available at\nwww.npms.phmsa.dot.gov or contact the PHMSA Geographic Information\nSystems Manager at (202) 366-4595.\nThe Notice alleged that Respondent violated 49 C.F.R. § 191.29 by failing to submit each year,\non or before March 15, geospatial data representing its assets as of December 31 of the previous\nyear. Specifically, the Notice alleged that Pine Needle failed to submit geospatial data,\nattributes, metadata and transmittal letter appropriate for use in the National Pipeline Mapping\nSystem in a timely manner for calendar years 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2017. The Notice alleged\nthat Pine Needle’s geospatial data submittals exceeded the annual March 15 deadline as follows:\nCalendar Year Submittal Date Duration of\nExceedance (days)\n2014 March 27, 2014 11\n2015 March 17, 2015 1\n2016 March 24, 2016 8\n2017 May 9, 2017 54\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. § 191.29 by failing to submit each\nyear, on or before March 15, geospatial data representing its assets as of December 31 of the\nprevious year.\n\n\n\nCPF No. 2-2018-3001\nPage 3\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$200,000 per violation for each day of the violation, up to a maximum of $2,000,000 for any\nrelated series of violations.3 In determining the amount of a civil penalty under 49 U.S.C.\n§ 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; and any effect\nthat the penalty may have on its ability to continue doing business; and the good faith of\nRespondent in attempting to comply with the pipeline safety regulations. In addition, I may\nconsider the economic benefit gained from the violation without any reduction because of\nsubsequent damages, and such other matters as justice may require. The Notice proposed a total\ncivil penalty of $25,000 for the violation cited above.\nItem 1: The Notice proposed a civil penalty of $25,000 for Respondent’s violation of 49 C.F.R.\n§ 191.29, for failing to submit each year, on or before March 15, geospatial data representing its\nassets as of December 31 of the previous year. Respondent neither contested the allegation nor\npresented any evidence or argument justifying a reduction in, or elimination of, the proposed\npenalty. Accordingly, having reviewed the record and considered the assessment criteria, I\nassess Pine Needle a civil penalty of $25,000 for violation of 49 C.F.R. § 191.29, which amount\nwas paid in full by wire transfer on July 12, 2018.\nThe terms and conditions of this Final Order are effective upon service in accordance with\n49 C.F.R. § 190.5.\nSeptember 24, 2018\n___________________________________ __________________________\nAlan K. Mayberry Date Issued\nAssociate Administrator\nfor Pipeline Safety\n3 These amounts are adjusted annually for inflation. See, e.g., Pipeline Safety: Inflation Adjustment of Maximum\nCivil Penalties, 82 Fed. Reg. 19325 (April 27, 2017).","truncated":false,"body_characters":9196}