{"operation":"document","citation":"CPF 42023045NOPV","title":"ENTERPRISE PRODUCTS OPERATING LLC — Notice of Probable Violation","source_type":"enforcement","agency":"Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration","status":"historical","official":true,"published_on":"2023-05-11","effective_on":null,"summary":"CLOSED notice of probable violation citing 195.406(b), 195.52(a)(2), 195.52(a)(3).","machine_formats":{"json":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-42023045nopv.json","markdown":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-42023045nopv.md"},"app_url":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-42023045nopv","source_url":"https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-data/case/42023045NOPV","body":"Notice of Probable Violation involving ENTERPRISE PRODUCTS OPERATING LLC. PHMSA's enforcement data identifies the cited regulations as 195.406(b),  195.52(a)(2),  195.52(a)(3). The case was opened on 2023-05-11 and is reported as closed as of 2024-01-26. Open the official case record for notices, responses, orders, and the latest status.\n\nOfficial case documents:\n\n42023045NOPV_Final Order_01262024_(22-232770).pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/42023045NOPV/42023045NOPV_Final%20Order_01262024_(22-232770).pdf\n\n42023045NOPV_Final Order_01262024_(22-232770)_text.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/42023045NOPV/42023045NOPV_Final%20Order_01262024_(22-232770)_text.pdf\n\n42023045NOPV_PCO_05112023_(22-232770).pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/42023045NOPV/42023045NOPV_PCO_05112023_(22-232770).pdf\n\n42023045NOPV_PCO_05112023_(22-232770)_text.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/42023045NOPV/42023045NOPV_PCO_05112023_(22-232770)_text.pdf\n\n42023045NOPV_Final Order_01262024_(22-232770)_text.pdf\n\nJanuary 26, 2024\nVIA ELECTRONIC MAIL TO: gbacon@eprod.com\nGraham W. Bacon\nExecutive Vice President & Chief Operating Officer\nEnterprise Products Operating, LLC\n1100 Louisiana Street\nHouston, Texas 77002\nRe: CPF No. 4-2023-045-NOPV\nDear Mr. Bacon:\nEnclosed please find the Final Order issued in the above-referenced case. It makes a finding of\nviolation and finds that Enterprise Products Operating, LLC, has completed the actions specified\nin the Notice to comply with the pipeline safety regulations. Therefore, this case is now closed.\nService of the Final Order by e-mail is effective upon the date of transmission and\nacknowledgement of receipt as provided under 49 C.F.R. § 190.5.\nThank you for your cooperation in this matter.\nSincerely,\nAlan K. Mayberry\nAssociate Administrator\nfor Pipeline Safety\nEnclosure\ncc: Mr. Bryan Lethcoe, Director, Southwest Region, Office of Pipeline Safety, PHMSA\nMs. Suzie Davis, Senior Manager, Pipeline Compliance, Enterprise Products Operating,\nLLC, smdavis@eprod.com\nMr. Nhan Truong, Senior Manager, Pipeline Compliance, Enterprise Products Operating,\nLLC, nvtruong@eprod.com\nCONFIRMATION OF 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 )\nEnterprise Products Operating, LLC, ) CPF No. 4-2023-045-NOPV\n)\n)\n)\nRespondent. )\n____________________________________)\nFINAL ORDER\nFrom February 2 through September 6, 2022, pursuant to 49 U.S.C. § 60117, a representative of\nthe Pipeline 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 Enterprise\nProducts Operating, LLC (Enterprise or Respondent) in Houston, Mont Belvieu, and Skellytown,\nTexas. The facilities and records inspected were part of the Texas Express Pipeline. Texas\nExpress Pipeline is a joint venture with Enbridge Energy Partners, Anadarko Petroleum Corp.,\nDCP Midstream, and Enterprise Products Partners, and is an approximately 593-mile pipeline\nand affiliated NGL gathering system.\nAs a result of the inspection, the Director, Southwest Region, OPS (Director), issued to\nRespondent, by letter dated May 11, 2023, a Notice of Probable Violation and Proposed\nCompliance Order (Notice). In accordance with 49 C.F.R. § 190.207, the Notice proposed\nfinding that Enterprise had committed one violation of 49 C.F.R. Part 195 and proposed ordering\nRespondent to take certain measures to correct the alleged violation. The Notice also included\nan additional warning item pursuant to 49 C.F.R. § 190.205, which warned the operator to\ncorrect the probable violation or face possible future enforcement action.\nEnterprise responded to the Notice by letter dated June 9, 2023 (Response). Enterprise contested\nthe allegation and offered additional information in response to the Notice. Respondent did not\nrequest a hearing and therefore has waived its right to one.\nFINDING OF VIOLATION\nThe Notice alleged that Respondent violated 49 C.F.R. Part 195, as follows:\nItem 1: The Notice alleged that Respondent violated 49 C.F.R. § 195.406(b), which states:\n§ 195.406 Maximum operating pressure.\n\n\n\n(a) . . . .\n(b) No operator may permit the pressure in a pipeline during\nsurges or other variations from normal operations to exceed 110\npercent of the operating pressure limit established under paragraph\n(a) of this section. Each operator must provide adequate controls\nand protective equipment to control the pressure within this limit.\nThe Notice alleged that Respondent violated 49 C.F.R. § 195.406(b) by failing to provide\nadequate controls and protective equipment to control the pressure of the pipeline within 110\npercent of the operating limit. Specifically, the Notice alleged that Enterprise established\nshutdown limits at 115 percent of the operating pressure limit, rather than 110 percent, at its\nMemphis, Archer City, and Reliance pump stations.\nIn its Response, Enterprise contested this allegation of violation by stating that the Moore relay\nshutdown systems “were intended to provide overpressure protection for the pumps, not the\npipelines,” and therefore were initially installed at 115 percent of the maximum operating pressure\n(MOP).1 After issuance of the Notice, Enterprise adjusted the Enterprise Moore relay shutdown\nsystems to 110 percent of the MOP.2 Enterprise stated its “high pressure shut down settings … at\nthe six new Texas Express Pipeline pump stations are, and have always been, set at less than 110\npercent of the [MOP.]”3 With its Response, Respondent provided a piping and instrumentation\ndiagram for Memphis Pump Station Mainline Pump PU-1021 as a representative example of the\nfacilities in question.\nA pipeline may not be operated at a pressure exceeding MOP pursuant to § 195.406(a), except\nfor surge pressures and other variations from normal operations. During surges and other\nvariations, § 195.406(b) prohibits pipeline pressure above 110 percent of the established\noperating limit and requires each operator to provide adequate controls and protective equipment\nto control the pressure in a pipeline within this limit. “Pipeline,” pursuant to § 195.2, is defined\nas “all parts of a pipeline facility through which a hazardous liquid or carbon dioxide moves in\ntransportation, including…pumping units” (emphasis added). Therefore, because pumping units\nare included in Part 195’s definition of “pipeline,” the requirement to have controls and\nprotective equipment to control pressure within 110 percent of the MOP applied to the Moore\nrelay shutdown systems that were intended to protect the pumps from overpressure.\nConsequently, Enterprise was in violation of that requirement when it established the shutdown\npressure limit at 115 percent of the MOP at its Memphis, Archer City, and Reliance pump\nstations.\nAccordingly, after considering all of the evidence, I find that Respondent violated 49 C.F.R.\n§ 195.406(b) by failing to provide adequate controls to control the pressure of the pipeline within\n110 percent of the operating limit.\nThis finding of violation will be considered a prior offense in any subsequent enforcement action\n1 Response to PHMSA CPF No. 4-2023-045-NOPV, dated June 9, 2023, on file with PHMSA, at 2.\n2 Id.\n3 Id.\n\n\n\ntaken against Respondent.\nCOMPLIANCE ORDER\nThe Notice proposed a compliance order with respect to Item 1 in the Notice for a violation of 49\nC.F.R. § 195.406(b). Under 49 U.S.C. § 60118(a), each person who engages in the\ntransportation of hazardous liquids or who owns or operates a pipeline facility is required to\ncomply with the applicable safety standards established under chapter 601. In a Region\nRecommendation dated September 28, 2023, the Director indicated that Respondent has taken\nthe following actions specified in the proposed compliance order:\n1. With respect to the violation of § 195.406(b) (Item 1), Respondent has adjusted\nthe Enterprise Moore relay shutdown systems to 110 percent of the MOP.\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.\nWARNING ITEM\nWith respect to Item 2, the Notice alleged a probable violation of Part 195, but identified it as a\nwarning item pursuant to § 190.205. The warning was for:\n49 C.F.R. § 195.52(a)(2) and (a)(3) (Item 2) ─ Respondent’s alleged failure to\nnotify the National Response Center within one hour following a confirmed\ndiscovery of a release of two reportable accidents on July 18, 2019, and May 24,\n2022.\nEnterprise presented information in its Response arguing that it provided notification to National\nResponse Center of the May 24, 2022, incident within one hour of confirmed discovery. Under\n§ 190.205, PHMSA does not adjudicate warning items to determine whether a probable violation\noccurred. If OPS finds a violation of this provision in a subsequent inspection, Respondent may\nbe subject to future enforcement action.\nUnder 49 C.F.R. § 190.243, Respondent may submit a Petition for Reconsideration of this Final\nOrder to the Associate Administrator, Office of Pipeline Safety, PHMSA, 1200 New Jersey\nAvenue, SE, East Building, 2nd Floor, Washington, DC 20590, with a copy sent to the Office of\nChief Counsel, PHMSA, at the same address. The written petition must be received no later than\n20 days after receipt of the Final Order by Respondent. Any petition submitted must contain a\nstatement of the issue(s) and meet all other requirements of 49 C.F.R. § 190.243. The terms of\nthe order, including corrective action, remain in effect unless the Associate Administrator, upon\nrequest, grants a stay.\nThe terms and conditions of this Final Order are effective upon service in accordance with 49\n\n\n\nC.F.R. § 190.5.\nJanuary 26, 2024\n___________________________________ __________________________\nAlan K. Mayberry Date Issued\nAssociate Administrator\nfor Pipeline Safety","truncated":false,"body_characters":10106}