{"operation":"document","citation":"CPF 420177002M","title":"ENERGY XXI USA, INC — Notice of Amendment","source_type":"enforcement","agency":"Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration","status":"historical","official":true,"published_on":"2017-05-16","effective_on":null,"summary":"CLOSED notice of amendment citing 195.234(a), 195.234(b), 195.402(c)(10), 195.402(c)(3), 195.569, 195.573(e), 195.59(a).","machine_formats":{"json":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-420177002m.json","markdown":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-420177002m.md"},"app_url":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-420177002m","source_url":"https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-data/case/420177002M","body":"Notice of Amendment involving ENERGY XXI USA, INC. PHMSA's enforcement data identifies the cited regulations as 195.234(a),  195.234(b),  195.402(c)(10),  195.402(c)(3),  195.569,  195.573(e),  195.59(a). The case was opened on 2017-05-16 and is reported as closed as of 2018-02-14. Open the official case record for notices, responses, orders, and the latest status.\n\nOfficial case documents:\n\n420177002M_Closure Letter_02142018.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/420177002M/420177002M_Closure%20Letter_02142018.pdf\n\n420177002M_Closure Letter_02142018_text.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/420177002M/420177002M_Closure%20Letter_02142018_text.pdf\n\n420177002M_Notice of Amendment_05162017.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/420177002M/420177002M_Notice%20of%20Amendment_05162017.pdf\n\n420177002M_Notice of Amendment_05162017_text.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/420177002M/420177002M_Notice%20of%20Amendment_05162017_text.pdf\n\n420177002M_Operator Response to Notice and Request for Time Extension_06092017.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/420177002M/420177002M_Operator%20Response%20to%20Notice%20and%20Request%20for%20Time%20Extension_06092017.pdf\n\n420177002M_Notice of Amendment_05162017_text.pdf\n\nNOTICE OF AMENDMENT\nCERTIFIED MAIL - RETURN RECEIPT REQUESTED\nMay 16, 2017\nMr. Keith Acker, Sr. Vice President\nEnergy XXI USA, Inc.\n1021 Main Street, Suite 2626\nHouston, TX 77002\nCPF 4-2017-7002M\nDear Mr. Acker:\nFrom February 23, through April 14, 2016, representatives of the Pipeline and Hazardous\nMaterials Safety Administration (PHMSA) pursuant to Chapter 601 of 49 United States Code\ninspected Energy XXI USA, Inc.’s (EXXI USA) procedures for your crude oil pipeline operations\nin the Gulf of Mexico and Grande Isle, Louisiana areas.\nOn the basis of the inspection, PHMSA has identified the apparent inadequacies found within\nEXXI USA’s plans or procedures, as described below:\n1. §195.402 Procedural manual for operations, maintenance, and emergencies.\n(c) Maintenance and normal operations. The manual required by paragraph (a) of this\nsection must include procedures for the following to provide safety during\nmaintenance and normal operations:\n(3) Operating, maintaining, and repairing the pipeline system in accordance with\neach of the requirements of this subpart and subpart H of this part.\n§195.234 Welds: Nondestructive testing.\n(a) A weld may be nondestructively tested by any process that will clearly indicate\n\n\n\nany defects that may affect the integrity of the weld.\n(b) Any nondestructive testing of welds must be performed—\n(1) In accordance with a written set of procedures for nondestructive testing; and\n(2) With personnel that have been trained in the established procedures and in the\nuse of the equipment employed in the testing.\nEXXI USA procedure P-195.214: Welding did not specify that a weld may be nondestructively\ntested by any process that will clearly indicate any defects that may affect the integrity of the weld\nand nondestructive testing of welds must be performed in accordance with a written set of\nprocedures for nondestructive testing; and with personnel that have been trained in the established\nprocedures and in the use of the equipment employed in the testing.\n2. §195.402 Procedural manual for operations, maintenance, and emergencies.\n(c) Maintenance and normal operations. The manual required by paragraph (a) of this\nsection must include procedures for the following to provide safety during\nmaintenance and normal operations:\n(3) Operating, maintaining, and repairing the pipeline system in accordance with\neach of the requirements of this subpart and subpart H of this part.\n§195.569 Do I have to examine exposed portions of buried pipelines?\nWhenever you have knowledge that any portion of a buried pipeline is exposed, you\nmust examine the exposed portion for evidence of external corrosion if the pipe is\nbare, or if the coating is deteriorated. If you find external corrosion requiring\ncorrective action under §195.585, you must investigate circumferentially and\nlongitudinally beyond the exposed portion (by visual examination, indirect method,\nor both) to determine whether additional corrosion requiring remedial action exists\nin the vicinity of the exposed portion.\nEXXI USA procedure P-195.422: Pipeline Repair Procedures did not specify that if external\ncorrosion is found on exposed pipe that there must be further investigation circumferentially and\nlongitudinally beyond the exposed portion by visual examination, indirect method, or both to\ndetermine whether additional corrosion exists and to determine whether additional corrosion\nrequires remedial action.\n3. §195.402 Procedural manual for operations, maintenance, and emergencies.\n(c) Maintenance and normal operations. The manual required by paragraph (a) of this\nsection must include procedures for the following to provide safety during\nmaintenance and normal operations:\n(3) Operating, maintaining, and repairing the pipeline system in accordance with\neach of the requirements of this subpart and subpart H of this part.\n2\n\n\n\n§195.573 What must I do to monitor external corrosion control?\n(e) Corrective action. You must correct any identified deficiency in corrosion control\nas required by §195.401(b). However, if the deficiency involves a pipeline in an\nintegrity management program under §195.452, you must correct the deficiency as\nrequired by §195.452(h).\nEXXI USA procedure P-195.561: External Corrosion Remediation did not specify that\nremediation for corrosion control deficiencies indicated by monitoring will be completed before\nthe next required inspection. EXXI USA procedures stated that remediation should be completed\nwithin 15 months but does not account for any monitoring inspections completed toward the end\nof the calendar year.\n4. §195.402 Procedural manual for operations, maintenance, and emergencies.\n(c) Maintenance and normal operations. The manual required by paragraph (a) of this\nsection must include procedures for the following to provide safety during\nmaintenance and normal operations:\n(10) Abandoning pipeline facilities, including safe disconnection from an operating\npipeline system, purging of combustibles, and sealing abandoned facilities left in place\nto minimize safety and environmental hazards. For each abandoned offshore pipeline\nfacility or each abandoned onshore pipeline facility that crosses over, under or\nthrough commercially navigable waterways the last operator of that facility must file\na report upon abandonment of that facility in accordance with §195.59 of this part.\n§195.59 Abandonment or deactivation of facilities.\nFor each abandoned offshore pipeline facility or each abandoned onshore pipeline\nfacility that crosses over, under or through a commercially navigable waterway, the\nlast operator of that facility must file a report upon abandonment of that facility.\n(a) The preferred method to submit data on pipeline facilities abandoned after\nOctober 10, 2000 is to the National Pipeline Mapping System (NPMS) in accordance\nwith the NPMS “Standards for Pipeline and Liquefied Natural Gas Operator\nSubmissions.” To obtain a copy of the NPMS Standards, please refer to the NPMS\nhomepage at http://www.npms.phmsa.dot.gov or contact the NPMS National\nRepository at 703-317-3073. A digital data format is preferred, but hard copy\nsubmissions are acceptable if they comply with the NPMS Standards. In addition to\nthe NPMS-required attributes, operators must submit the date of abandonment,\ndiameter, method of abandonment, and certification that, to the best of the operator's\nknowledge, all of the reasonably available information requested was provided and,\nto the best of the operator's knowledge, the abandonment was completed in\naccordance with applicable laws. Refer to the NPMS Standards for details in\n3\n\n\n\npreparing your data for submission. The NPMS Standards also include details of how\nto submit data. Alternatively, operators may submit reports by mail, fax or e-mail to\nthe Office of Pipeline Safety, Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety\nAdministration, U.S. Department of Transportation, Information Resources\nManager, PHP-10, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., Washington, DC 20590-0001; fax\n(202) 366-4566; e-mail, “InformationResourcesManager@phmsa.\ndot.gov. The information in the report must contain all reasonably available\ninformation related to the facility, including information in the possession of a third\nparty. The report must contain the location, size, date, method of abandonment, and\na certification that the facility has been abandoned in accordance with all applicable\nlaws.\nEXXI USA procedure P-195.402(c)(10) Abandonment Or Deactivation of Facilities did not\nspecify that reports will be submitted to NPMS or alternatively PHMSA when offshore pipeline\nfacilities are abandoned.\nResponse to this Notice\nThis Notice is provided pursuant to 49 U.S.C. § 60108(a) and 49 C.F.R. § 190.237. Enclosed as\npart of this Notice is a document entitled Response Options for Pipeline Operators in Compliance\nProceedings. Please refer to this document and note the response options. Be advised that all\nmaterial you submit in response to this enforcement action is subject to being made publicly\navailable. If you believe that any portion of your responsive material qualifies for confidential\ntreatment under 5 U.S.C. 552(b), along with the complete original document you must provide a\nsecond copy of the document with the portions you believe qualify for confidential treatment\nredacted and an explanation of why you believe the redacted information qualifies for confidential\ntreatment under 5 U.S.C. 552(b). If you do not respond within 30 days of receipt of this Notice,\nthis constitutes a waiver of your right to contest the allegations in this Notice and authorizes the\nAssociate Administrator for Pipeline Safety to find facts as alleged in this Notice without further\nnotice to you and to issue a Final Order.\nIf, after opportunity for a hearing, your plans or procedures are found inadequate as alleged in this\nNotice, you may be ordered to amend your plans or procedures to correct the inadequacies (49\nC.F.R. § 190.237). If you are not contesting this Notice, we propose that you submit your amended\nprocedures to my office within 30 days of receipt of this Notice. This period may be extended by\nwritten request for good cause. Once the inadequacies identified herein have been addressed in\nyour amended procedures, this enforcement action will be closed.\n4\n\n\n\nIt is requested (not mandated) that Energy XXI USA, Inc. maintain documentation of the safety\nimprovement costs associated with fulfilling this Notice of Amendment (preparation/revision of\nplans, procedures) and submit the total to R. M. Seeley, Director, Southwest Region, Pipeline\nand Hazardous Materials Safety Administration. In correspondence concerning this matter,\nplease refer to CPF 4-2017-7002M and, for each document you submit, please provide a copy in\nelectronic format whenever possible.\nSincerely,\nTerri J. Binns\nActing Director, Southwest Region\nPipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration\nEnclosure: Response Options for Pipeline Operators in Compliance Proceedings\n5\n\n420177002M_Closure Letter_02142018_text.pdf\n\nCERTIFIED MAIL - RETURN RECEIPT REQUESTED\nFebruary 14, 2018\nMr. Wesley Stout\nVice President, Production\nEnergy XXI USA, LLC\n1021 Main Street, Suite 2626\nHouston, TX 77002\nCPF 4-2017-7002M\nDear Mr. Wesley Stout:\nFrom February 23, 2016 through April 14, 2016, representatives from the Pipeline and Hazardous\nMaterials Safety Administration (PHMSA), pursuant to chapter 601 of 49 United States Code,\nconducted an on-site pipeline safety inspection of Energy XXI USA, LLC (EXXI) procedures in\nHouston, TX. As a result of the inspection EXXI was issued a Notice of Amendment on May 16,\n2017, which proposed amendment of your procedures.\nEXXI submitted its amended procedures on September 5, 2017. My staff reviewed the amended\nprocedure, and it appears that the inadequacies outlined in this Notice of Amendment have been\ncorrected.\nThis letter is to inform you no further action is necessary and this case is now closed. Thank you\nfor your cooperation.\nSincerely,\nFrank Causey\nActing Director, Southwest Region\nPipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration","truncated":false,"body_characters":12389}