{"operation":"document","citation":"CPF 42026027NOPV","title":"ONEOK NGL PIPELINE, LLC — Notice of Probable Violation","source_type":"enforcement","agency":"Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration","status":"historical","official":true,"published_on":"2026-02-03","effective_on":null,"summary":"CLOSED notice of probable violation citing 195.402(a), 195.402(c)(11).","machine_formats":{"json":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-42026027nopv.json","markdown":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-42026027nopv.md"},"app_url":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-enforcement-42026027nopv","source_url":"https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-data/case/42026027NOPV","body":"Notice of Probable Violation involving ONEOK NGL PIPELINE, LLC. PHMSA's enforcement data identifies the cited regulations as 195.402(a),  195.402(c)(11). The case was opened on 2026-02-03 and is reported as closed as of 2026-03-11. Proposed civil penalty: $515,328. Assessed civil penalty: $515,328. Open the official case record for notices, responses, orders, and the latest status.\n\nOfficial case documents:\n\n42026027NOPV_Final Order_03112026_(24-310084).pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/42026027NOPV/42026027NOPV_Final%20Order_03112026_(24-310084).pdf\n\n42026027NOPV_Final Order_03112026_(24-310084)_text.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/42026027NOPV/42026027NOPV_Final%20Order_03112026_(24-310084)_text.pdf\n\n42026027NOPV_PCP_02032026_(24-310084).pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/42026027NOPV/42026027NOPV_PCP_02032026_(24-310084).pdf\n\n42026027NOPV_PCP_02032026_(24-310084)_text.pdf: https://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/enforcement-documents/42026027NOPV/42026027NOPV_PCP_02032026_(24-310084)_text.pdf\n\n42026027NOPV_Final Order_03112026_(24-310084)_text.pdf\n\nU.S. Department\nof Transportation\nPipeline and Hazardous\nMaterials Safety\nAdministration\n1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE\nWashington, DC 20590\nMarch 11, 2026\nVIA EMAIL TO: pierce.norton@oneok.com\nPierce Norton\nPresident and Chief Executive Officer\nONEOK NGL Pipeline, LLC\n100 West Fifth Street\nTulsa, OK 74103\nRe: CPF No. 4-2026-027-NOPV\nDear Mr. Norton:\nEnclosed please find the Final Order issued in the above-referenced case. It makes a finding of\nviolation and finds that the civil penalty amount of $515,328 has been paid in full. This case is\nnow closed. Service of the Final Order by e-mail is effective upon the date of transmission and\nacknowledgement of receipt as provided under 49 CFR § 190.5.\nThank you for your cooperation in this matter.\nSincerely,\nLinda Daugherty\nActing Associate Administrator\nfor Pipeline Safety\nEnclosures (Final Order and NOPV)\ncc: Bryan Lethcoe, Director, Southwest Region, Office of Pipeline Safety, PHMSA\nRandy Lentz, EVP / Chief Operating Officer, ONEOK NGL Pipeline, LLC,,\nrandy.lentz@oneok.com\nScott Schingen, SVP, Engineering and Operations, ONEOK NGL Pipeline, LLC,\nscott.schingen@oneok.com\nWalter Allen, VP Natural Gas Liquid Operations, ONEOK NGL Pipeline, LLC,\nwalter.allen@oneok.com\n\n\n\nJason Smith, VP Asset Integrity, ONEOK NGL Pipeline, LLC,\nJason.A.Smith@oneok.com\nDanny Scroggins, Legal Counsel, ONEOK, Inc., danny.scroggins@oneok.com\nCharles Misak, Director, Asset Integrity and Engineering, ONEOK NGL Pipeline, LLC,\nCharles.misak@oneok.com\nTeri Anderson, Senior Compliance Manager, ONEOK NGL Pipeline, LLC,\nteri.anderson@oneok.com\nRyan Mccoy, Regulatory Compliance Manager, ONEOK NGL Pipeline, LLC,\nryan.mccoy@oneok.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____________________________________\n)\nIn the Matter of )\n)\nONEOK NGL Pipeline, LLC, ) CPF No. 4-2026-027-NOPV\n)\nRespondent. )\n____________________________________)\nFINAL ORDER\nOn February 3, 2026, pursuant to 49 CFR § 190.207, the Director, Southwest Region, Office of\nPipeline Safety (OPS), issued a Notice of Probable Violation (Notice) to ONEOK NGL Pipeline,\nLLC (Respondent). The Notice proposed finding that Respondent had violated the pipeline\nsafety regulations in 49 CFR Part 195 and proposed a civil penalty of $515,328. Respondent did\nnot contest the allegation of violation and paid the proposed civil penalty on March 4, 2026. In\naccordance with section 190.208(a)(1), such payment authorizes the entry of this final order.\nBased upon a review of all of the evidence, pursuant to section 190.213, I find Respondent\nviolated the pipeline safety regulation listed below, as more fully described in the enclosed\nNotice, which is incorporated by reference:\n49 CFR § 195.402(a) (Item 1) ─ Respondent failed to follow its manual of\nwritten procedures for conducting normal operations and maintenance activities.\nThis finding of violation will be considered a prior offense in any subsequent enforcement action\ntaken against Respondent. In accordance with 49 CFR § 190.223, Respondent is assessed the\nproposed civil penalty amount of $515,328, which Respondent has already paid in full.\nThe terms and conditions of this order are effective upon service in accordance with\n49 CFR § 190.5.\n___________________________________ _________________________\nLinda Daugherty Date Issued\nActing Associate Administrator\nfor Pipeline Safety\n\n\n\nU.S. Department of Transportation\nPipeline and Hazardous Materials\nSafety Administration 8701 S. Gessner, Suite 630\nHouston TX 77074\nNOTICE OF PROBABLE VIOLATION\nAND\nPROPOSED CIVIL PENALTY\nVIA ELECTRONIC MAIL TO: pierce.norton@oneok.com\nFebruary 3, 2026\nPierce Norton\nPresident and Chief Executive Officer\nONEOK NGL Pipeline, LLC\n100 West Fifth Street\nTulsa, OK 74103\nCPF 4-2026-027-NOPV\nDear Mr. Norton:\nFrom January 19, 2023 through December 11, 2025, a representative of the Pipeline and Hazardous\nMaterials Safety Administration (PHMSA), Office of Pipeline Safety (OPS), pursuant to Chapter\n601 of 49 United States Code (U.S.C.) conducted an accident investigation and review of the work\npractices used in the activities associated with two accidents (National Response Center Report #\n1358064 and # 1400727) in Howard and Reeves Counties in Texas.\nAs a result of the investigation, it is alleged that you have committed a probable violation of the\nPipeline Safety Regulations, Title 49, Code of Federal Regulations (CFR). The item investigated\nand the probable violation is:\n\n\n\n1. § 195.402 Procedural manual for operations, maintenance, and emergencies.\n(a) General. Each operator shall prepare and follow for each\npipeline system a manual of written procedures for conducting normal\noperations and maintenance activities and handling abnormal\noperations and emergencies. This manual shall be reviewed at intervals\nnot exceeding 15 months, but at least once each calendar year, and\nappropriate changes made as necessary to insure that the manual is\neffective. This manual shall be prepared before initial operations of a\npipeline system commence, and appropriate parts shall be kept at\nlocations where operations and maintenance activities are conducted.\n(b) . . . .\n(c) Maintenance and normal operations. The manual required by\nparagraph (a) of this section must include procedures for the following\nto provide safety during maintenance and normal operations:\n(1) . . . .\n(11) Minimizing the likelihood of accidental ignition of vapors in\nareas near facilities identified under paragraph (c)(4) of this section\nwhere the potential exists for the presence of flammable liquids or\ngases.\nONEOK failed to follow its manual of written procedures for conducting normal operations and\nmaintenance activities in accordance with § 195.402(a). Specifically, ONEOK failed to follow its\nhot work1 procedures for minimizing the likelihood of accidental ignition of vapors in areas where\nthe potential exists for the presence of flammable liquids or gasses, as required by §\n195.402(c)(11), in two instances which resulted in the ignition of flammable vapors, one of which\nresulted in injuries.\nThe first incident occurred on January 19, 2023 on South McGregor Road in Howard County,\nTexas. On January 17, 2023, ONEOK created a repair plan to replace approximately 78-feet of\npipeline on the West Texas #1, 10” natural gas liquid pipeline. The work plan included two tie-in\nwelds after the pipeline was isolated and purged with nitrogen. ONEOK issued a hot work permit\nfor the scope of the repair work, including two tie-in welds.\nONEOK’s Hot Work Standard, SAF2.65.1200 (rev. 3, 06/13/22), Section 4.8 requires atmospheric\nmonitoring of oxygen and LEL levels during hot work activities. In addition, Section 4.8.3\nrequires continuous monitoring of nearby valve openings during hot work. ONEOK’s Vapor\nBarrier Standard, OPS3.200.6012 (rev. 4, 05/15/22), Section 4.6, requires the use of vapor barriers\nduring certain hot work activities, including pipe replacement with welding work. The repair plan\nalso included environmental testing for flammable vapors.\nOn January 19, 2023, ONEOK’s contractor issued a separate hot work permit for nondestructive\ntesting (NDT) and coating application. During the NDT inspection, the westernmost tie-in weld\n1 ONEOK defines “hot work” as work activities in which the heat used or generated by the work is of such intensity\nto cause the ignition of any flammable liquids, gases, or any other combustible matter.\n2\n\n\n\nwas found to require repair before the pipeline could be returned to service. Contractor personnel\nbegan a weld repair, which was not included as an activity in its hot work permit. Due to\nincomplete purging or a leaking mainline valve, vapors accumulated near the weld repair cite.\nLEL checks for flammable vapors at the weld repair were not made immediately prior to welding,\nno LEL monitoring was performed at the nearby closed 2-inch vent valve, and no vapor barriers\nwere used.\nAt approximately 10:02 am, the welding arc being used for the repair ignited flammable vapors,\nresulting in a small fire. On February 17, 2023, ONEOK submitted a PHMSA F7000-1 accident\nreporting form which acknowledged that the incident was caused by a failure to follow adequately\nfollow its hot work standards.\nThe second accident occurred on June 3, 2024 at Orla Injection Site 1210 in Reeves County, Texas\nduring the preparation of a cleaning pig activity. Prior to beginning the cleaning pig run, and in\naccordance with its Pigging of Pipelines Procedure, PS3.200.7102 (rev. 19), Section 4.5(e),\nONEOK reviewed its written work plan and completed a safety pre-inspection for cleaning runs\ndesigned to mitigate risks prior to loading the cleaning pig. In addition, Section 4.5(d) requires\nobtaining written approval or a work permit prior to beginning work. ONEOK’s Work Permit\nStandard (SAF2.650.1490) (rev. 4, 05/24/2021), Section 4 requires the performance of a hazard\nassessment and completion of a hazard identification risk assessment (HIRA) or similar\nassessment. ONEOK prepared a HIRA checklist which included a set of hazard controls, including\nthe use of only intrinsically safe tools and equipment. After the valves in the pig launcher were\nlined, the 12-inch kicker and the 16-inch barrel valves leaked due to mechanical damage to the\nseals. This leakage resulted in accumulation of flammable vapors inside the pig launcher. ONEOK\npersonnel recorded a lower explosive limit (LEL) reading of 0 percent approximately 10 minutes\nprior to the incident, but failed to subsequently continuously monitor atmospheric conditions. In\naddition, ONEOK’s contractor crew proceeded to use an electric grease gun, which was not\nintrinsically safe, in the work area.\nAt approximately 11:50 a.m., during the application of grease to the O-ring inside the pig launcher\nusing the grease gun, the accumulated vapors ignited, producing a flash fire reportedly reaching a\nmaximum size of 20-feet by 10-feet. As a result of the flash fire, two ONEOK contractors suffered\nburn injuries. The incident also caused the unintentional release of approximately 0.6 bbls of\nnatural gas liquids. On July 2, 2024, ONEOK submitted a PHMSA F7000-1 accident reporting\nform which acknowledged the failure to follow its hot work standard as a contributing factor to\nthe incident.\nTherefore, ONEOK failed to follow its manual of written procedures for conducting normal\noperations and maintenance activities in accordance with § 195.402(a).\nProposed Civil Penalty\nUnder 49 U.S.C. § 60122 and 49 CFR § 190.223, you are subject to a civil penalty not to exceed\n$272,926 per violation per day the violation persists, up to a maximum of $2,729,245 for a related\nseries of violations. For violation occurring on or after December 28, 2023 and before December\n3\n\n\n\n30, 2024, the maximum penalty may not exceed $266,015 per violation per day the violation\npersists, up to a maximum of $2,660,135 for a related series of violations. For violation occurring\non or after January 6, 2023 and before December 28, 2023, the maximum penalty may not exceed\n$257,664 per violation per day the violation persists, up to a maximum of $2,576,627 for a related\nseries of violations. For violation occurring on or after March 21, 2022 and before January 6,\n2023, the maximum penalty may not exceed $239,142 per violation per day the violation persists,\nup to a maximum of $2,391,412 for a related series of violations. For violation occurring on or\nafter May 3, 2021 and before March 21, 2022, the maximum penalty may not exceed $225,134\nper violation per day the violation persists, up to a maximum of $2,251,334 for a related series of\nviolations. For violation occurring on or after January 11, 2021 and before May 3, 2021, the\nmaximum penalty may not exceed $222,504 per violation per day the violation persists, up to a\nmaximum of $2,225,034 for a related series of violations. For violation occurring on or after July\n31, 2019 and before January 11, 2021, the maximum penalty may not exceed $218,647 per\nviolation per day the violation persists, up to a maximum of $2,186,465 for a related series of\nviolations.\nWe have reviewed the circumstances and supporting documentation involved for the above\nprobable violation and recommend that you be preliminarily assessed a civil penalty of $515,328\nas follows:\nItem number PENALTY\n1 $ 515,328\nResponse to this Notice\nEnclosed as part of this Notice is a document entitled Response Options for Pipeline Operators in\nEnforcement Proceedings. Please refer to this document and note the response options. All\nmaterial you submit in response to this enforcement action may be made publicly available. If you\nbelieve that any portion of your responsive material qualifies for confidential treatment under 5\nU.S.C. §552(b), along with the complete original document you must provide a second copy of\nthe document with the portions you believe qualify for confidential treatment redacted and an\nexplanation of why you believe the redacted information qualifies for confidential treatment under\n5 U.S.C. § 552(b).\nFollowing your receipt of this Notice, you have 30 days to respond as described in the enclosed\nResponse Options. If you do not respond within 30 days of receipt of this Notice, this constitutes\na waiver of your right to contest the allegations in this Notice and authorizes the Associate\nAdministrator for Pipeline Safety to find facts as alleged in this Notice without further notice to\nyou and to issue a Final Order. If you are responding to this Notice, we propose that you submit\nyour correspondence to my office within 30 days from receipt of this Notice. The Region Director\nmay extend the period for responding upon a written request timely submitted demonstrating good\ncause for an extension. In your correspondence on this matter, please refer to CPF 4-2026-027-\nNOPV and, for each document you submit, please provide a copy in electronic format whenever\npossible.\n4\n\n\n\nSincerely,\nBryan Lethcoe\nDirector, Southwest Region, Office of Pipeline Safety\nPipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration\nEnclosures: Response Options for Pipeline Operators in Enforcement Proceedings\ncc: Randy Lentz, EVP / Chief Operating Officer, ONEOK NGL Pipeline, LLC,,\nrandy.lentz@oneok.com\nScott Schingen, SVP, Engineering and Operations, ONEOK NGL Pipeline, LLC,\nscott.schingen@oneok.com\nWalter Allen, VP Natural Gas Liquid Operations, ONEOK NGL Pipeline, LLC,\nwalter.allen@oneok.com\nJason Smith, VP Asset Integrity, ONEOK NGL Pipeline, LLC,\nJason.A.Smith@oneok.com\nDanny Scroggins, Legal Counsel, ONEOK, Inc., danny.scroggins@oneok.com\nCharles Misak, Director, Asset Integrity and Engineering, ONEOK NGL Pipeline, LLC,\nCharles.misak@oneok.com\nTeri Anderson, Senior Compliance Manager, ONEOK NGL Pipeline, LLC,\nteri.anderson@oneok.com\nRyan Mccoy, Regulatory Compliance Manager, ONEOK NGL Pipeline, LLC,\nryan.mccoy@oneok.com\n5","truncated":false,"body_characters":16075}