{"operation":"document","citation":"CPF 420161009","title":"MIDCONTINENT EXPRESS PIPELINE LLC — Notice of Probable Violation","source_type":"enforcement","agency":"Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration","status":"historical","official":true,"published_on":"2016-08-17","effective_on":null,"summary":"CLOSED notice of probable violation citing 192.947(d).","machine_formats":{"json":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-420161009.json","markdown":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-420161009.md"},"app_url":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-420161009","source_url":"https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-data/case/420161009","body":"Notice of Probable Violation involving MIDCONTINENT EXPRESS PIPELINE LLC. PHMSA's enforcement data identifies the cited regulation as 192.947(d). The case was opened on 2016-08-17 and is reported as closed as of 2017-04-18. Open the official case record for notices, responses, orders, and the latest status.\n\nOfficial case documents:\n\n420161009_Final Order_04182017.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/420161009/420161009_Final%20Order_04182017.pdf\n\n420161009_Final Order_04182017_text.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/420161009/420161009_Final%20Order_04182017_text.pdf\n\n420161009_NOPV PCO_08172016.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/420161009/420161009_NOPV%20PCO_08172016.pdf\n\n420161009_NOPV PCO_08172016_text.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/420161009/420161009_NOPV%20PCO_08172016_text.pdf\n\n420161009_Operator Response to Notice_09092016.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/420161009/420161009_Operator%20Response%20to%20Notice_09092016.pdf\n\n420161009_Final Order_04182017_text.pdf\n\nApril 18, 2017\nMr. Steve Kean\nPresident and Chief Executive Officer\nKinder Morgan, Inc.\n1001 Louisiana Street\nHouston, TX 77002\nRe: CPF No. 4-2016-1009\nDear Mr. Kean:\nEnclosed please find the Final Order issued in the above-referenced case. It makes a finding of\nviolation and finds that Midcontinent Express Pipeline LLC has completed the actions specified\nin the Notice to comply with the pipeline safety regulations. Midcontinent Express Pipeline LLC\nis owned by Kinder Morgan, Inc. Therefore, this case is now closed. Service of the Final Order\nby certified mail is deemed effective upon the date of mailing, or as otherwise provided under 49\nC.F.R. § 190.5.\nThank you for your cooperation in this matter.\nSincerely,\nAlan K. Mayberry\nAssociate Administrator\nfor Pipeline Safety\nEnclosure\ncc: Mr. R.M. Seeley, Director, Southwest Region, OPS\nMr. Gary Buchler, Vice President Operations and Engineering, Midcontinent Express\nPipeline, 1001 Louisiana Street, Houston, Texas 77002\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____________________________________\nIn the Matter of )\n)\n)\nMidcontinent Express Pipeline, LLC, )\na subsidiary of Kinder Morgan, Inc., )\nRespondent. )\n____________________________________)\n) CPF No. 4-2016-1009\nFINAL ORDER\nDuring the period from November 03, 2015, to July 11, 2016, pursuant to 49 U.S.C. § 60117, a\nrepresentative of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), Office\nof Pipeline Safety (OPS), conducted an on-site pipeline safety inspection of the facilities and\nrecords of Midcontinent Express Pipeline, LLC (MEP or Respondent), in Texas, Louisiana,\nOklahoma, and Mississippi. MEP is an interstate natural gas pipeline company whose system\nconsists of a 500-mile natural gas pipeline that originates near Bennington, Oklahoma, and\nterminates at an interconnection with Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line near Butler, Alabama.\nMEP has five compressor stations along its system totaling approximately 144,000 horsepower.1\nKinder Morgan owns 50 percent of MEP and Energy Transfer Partners owns 50 percent.\nAs a result of the inspection, the Director, Southwest Region, OPS (Director), issued to\nRespondent, by letter dated August 17, 2016, a Notice of Probable Violation and Proposed\nCompliance Order (Notice). In accordance with 49 C.F.R. § 190.207, the Notice proposed\nfinding that MEP had violated 49 C.F.R. §192.947(d), and proposed ordering Respondent to take\ncertain measures to correct the alleged violation.\nMEP responded to the Notice by letter dated September 9, 2016 (Response) and September 29,\n2016 (Supplemental Response). The company did not contest the allegations of violation and\nhas completed the compliance actions, as provided in 49 C.F.R. § 190.217. Therefore, this case\nis now closed.\nFINDING OF VIOLATION\nIn its Supplemental Response, MEP did not contest the allegation in the Notice that it violated 49\nC.F.R. Part 192, as follows:\n1 Pipeline Safety Violation Report (Violation Report), (Aug. 17, 2016) (on file with PHMSA), at 1.\n\n\n\nCPF No. 4-2016-1009\nPage 2\nItem 1: The Notice alleged that Respondent violated 49 C.F.R. § 192.947, which states, in\nrelevant part:\n§ 192.947 What records must an operator keep?\nAn operator must maintain, for the useful life of the pipeline, records that\ndemonstrate compliance with the requirements of this subpart. At minimum, an\noperator must maintain the following records for review during an inspection.\n(a)…\n(d) Documents to support any decision, analysis and process developed and\nused to implement and evaluate each element of the baseline assessment plan and\nintegrity management program. Documents include those developed and used in\nsupport of any identification, calculation, amendment, modification, justification,\ndeviation and determination made, and any action taken to implement and evaluate\nany of the program elements;\nThe Notice alleged that Respondent violated 49 C.F.R. § 192.947(d) by failing to maintain\nrecords and documents supporting decisions regarding identified potential threats for MEP’s\nwritten integrity assessment plan. Specifically, the Notice alleged that on two separate\noccasions, decisions were made that affected the plan without documentation to support the\ndecision.\nRespondent did not contest this allegation of violation. The first instance occurred when MEP\nfailed to include incorrect operations and equipment failures as threats in the initial Baseline\nAssessment plan for the pipeline system. The second instance occurred when MEP amended the\nplan and included incorrect operations and equipment failures as threats to be assessed in future\nassessments. Respondent could not provide records to support these decisions. Accordingly,\nbased upon a review of all of the evidence, I find that Respondent violated 49 C.F.R.\n§ 192.947(d) by failing to maintain records and documents supporting decisions regarding\nidentified potential threats for MEP’s written integrity assessment plan.\nThis finding of violation will be considered a prior offense in any subsequent enforcement action\ntaken against Respondent.\nCOMPLIANCE ORDER\nThe Notice proposed a compliance order with respect to Item 1 in the Notice for the violation of\n49 C.F.R. § 192.947(d). Under 49 U.S.C. § 60118(a), each person who engages in the\ntransportation of gas or who owns or operates a pipeline facility is required to comply with the\napplicable safety standards established under chapter 601. The Director indicates that\nRespondent has taken the following actions specified in the proposed compliance order:\n1. With respect to the violation of § 192.947(d) (Item 1), Respondent has reviewed its\nprocedures to document all decisions pertaining to the written integrity management plan with\nappropriate MEP personnel and provided PHMSA with confirmation of the completed review.\n\n\n\nCPF No. 4-2016-1009\nPage 3\nPHMSA has reviewed the information provided regarding the training of all appropriate MEP\nemployees involved in documentation procedures and processes relating to the written integrity\nmanagement plan. The training focused on the requirement for documentation to support all plan\nchanges.\nAccordingly, I find that compliance has been achieved with respect to this violation. Therefore,\nthe compliance terms proposed in the Notice are not included in this Order.\nThe terms and conditions of this Final Order are effective upon service in accordance with 49\nC.F.R. § 190.5.\nApril 18, 2017\n___________________________________ __________________________\nAlan K. Mayberry Date Issued\nAssociate Administrator\nfor Pipeline Safety","truncated":false,"body_characters":7799}