The most recent federal inspection of Spectra Energy's Texas Eastern Transmission system, which includes the pipeline that burst in the Arkansas River last month, found several violations by the company, according to reports by the U.S. Department of Transportation's Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration.
During the 2011 inspection, Spectra Energy was cited for three violations, including not inspecting sections of pipe for corrosion, and was required to pay a civil penalty of $134,500.
Spectra Energy's 24-inch pipeline ruptured about a mile east of the Interstate 30 bridge on May 31, releasing 3.9 million cubic feet of natural gas into the flooded Arkansas River.
The 63-year-old pipeline is part of the Texas Eastern Transmission system, which crosses the river between Little Rock and North Little Rock.
The line that failed is a backup pipeline to the system's main transmission line, which runs more than 9,000 miles from Texas to New Jersey. The parallel lines are about 10 feet apart.
The company has been working to remove part of the broken pipeline from the river to inspect it and determine the cause of the break. A 400-foot section detached from the backup line when the pipeline burst and was pushed downstream in a strong current.
Spectra Energy said the main pipeline was operating normally after the backup line ruptured, but the company shut it down as a precaution and conducted internal inspections last week.
The inspections' results will "take a bit of time," said spokesman Phil West. He said the company is "not prepared to say what caused [the rupture] at this point."
Between February and December in 2011, the federal Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration conducted on-site inspections of facilities and records related to sections of the Texas Eastern Transmission line that run through Arkansas, Texas, Louisiana and the Gulf of Mexico.
The inspections found that in two instances Spectra Energy did not check the internal surface of "removed sections of pipe for evidence of corrosion," according to the final order by the pipeline agency. The sections of pipe that were removed were from a part of the line that runs outside Arkansas.
Regulations require pipe to be checked for corrosion when it is removed from a line for any reason, said the order, issued Dec. 21, 2012.
The pipeline agency also issued two citations to Spectra Energy for failure to follow its own written procedures for operations, maintenance and emergencies. One of the citations involved pipe monitoring at a compressor station at a location outside Arkansas. The other citation was for failure to conduct annual valve inspections.
Spectra Energy didn't properly inspect valves in Arkansas, Texas and Louisiana between 2008 and 2011, according to the order.
The order, which also included several warnings, said Spectra Energy did not contest the violations and paid the full $134,500 penalty in June 2012.
A spokesman for the pipeline agency could not say how common such violations are but said pipeline companies are required to address corrosion and other safety issues that might occur in a line.
"Basically not having effective corrosion management in place could eventually have serious effect on a pipeline," said Damon Hill, spokesman for the pipeline agency, when asked about the violations.
He said a pipeline system is inspected by the agency every two or three years.
"It's important to inspect any valve that could be needed in an event of an emergency," he said. "That's a big deal. You never know when something could potentially go wrong with a pipeline and if it does happen, you want to be able to take the proper precautions and have the proper emergency response in place."
Phillip Wallace, a representative for Pipeliners Local Union 798 in Bald Knob, said it is normal for inspectors to discover violations because of the nation's aging infrastructure.
"Unfortunately it's just a little bit too late for these old pipelines," said Wallace, a former pipeline welder. "[Companies] are not maintaining them. They're not spending the money to have a maintenance on them."
West, with Spectra Energy, said the violation involving valve checks happened when the company mistakenly classified a valve as an "emergency valve," which would require more frequent inspections.
"There were some cases where we misclassified those valves," he said.
Because the pipeline that ruptured was a backup line, it was not being remotely monitored by the company when it failed. Instead, the company said, it "manages risk" by keeping valves connecting the backup line to the main line closed.
With the valves shut, natural gas in the backup pipeline remains pressurized and does not flow through the main transmission line.
The valves connecting the backup line to the main pipeline are classified as "emergency valves" and were inspected in 2014, 2013 and 2012, West said. The valves were also operated in April as part of maintenance on the line.
The company is required to inspect the valves within each calendar year, in a period not lasting longer than 15 months, he said, adding that the company spends more than $700 million a year to maintain its pipelines.
"We have a number of auxiliary pipelines on Texas Eastern that serve as back-ups to the main pipeline," West said in an email. "In the event of a release of natural gas along these short segments of line, the release would be limited to the volume between the closed shut off valves at each end. There is typically no remote pressure monitoring on auxiliary pipelines because their normal operating mode is to be isolated, with shut off valves closed at both ends."
Business on 06/23/2015