AGUA TRANQUILLO MIDSTREAM LLC

Incident Narrative

ON OCTOBER 22, 2021, A 3RD PARTY PERSON WAS WORKING AT THEIR COMPANY DOCK FACILITY AND NOTICED A LARGE STREAM OF BUBBLES RISING TO THE WATER SURFACE IN THE NAVIGATION CHANNEL. THIS THIRD PARTY NOTIFIED LOCAL EMERGENCY OFFICIALS. COMPANY EMPLOYEES WERE NOTIFIED BY THE LOCAL EMERGENCY OFFICIALS AND RESPONDED TO THE LOCATION. THE VALVE ON THE PRODUCTION PLATFORM WAS CLOSED TO ISOLATE THE FLOW OF NATURAL GAS TO THE INCIDENT LOCATION. THE DOWNSTREAM VALVE WAS ALSO CLOSED. THE OPERATING PRESSURE ON THE PIPELINE AT THE TIME OF THE INCIDENT WAS 450 PSIG. THE PIPELINE WAS ISOLATED AND CONTINUED TO DE-PRESSURE TO 150 PSI. DUE TO THE LOCATION OF THE INCIDENT AND SLIGHT CONCERN FOR IGNITION, THE REMAINING PRESSURE WAS RELIEVED TO ATMOSPHERE, IN A CONTROLLED MANNER, AT THE DOWNSTREAM BLOCK VALVE. EFFORTS TO INVESTIGATE THE CAUSE OF FAILURE HAS NOT BEEN SUCCESSFUL. THE INCIDENT LOCATION IS IN A CRITICAL NAVIGATION CHANNEL IN THE CORPUS CHRISTI BAY. THE CHANNEL IS 50 FEET DEEP TO ACCOMMODATE LARGER TANKER AND LNG VESSELS. THE U.S. ARMY CORP OF ENGINEERS AND THE LOCAL NAVIGATION AUTHORITY RESTRICTED THE AMOUNT OF TIME DIVERS COULD BE IN CHANNEL INVESTIGATING THE FAILURE. TO DETERMINATION OF CAUSE OF FAILURE WAS MADE DUE TO THE USACE TIME RESTRICTIONS AND THE EXCESSIVE COST OF INVESTIGATION. THE USACE AND LOCAL NAVIGATION AUTHORITY IN THE CORPUS CHRISTI BAY IS WORKING TO INCREASE THE OPERATIONAL DEPTHS OF THE SHIPPING LANES IN THE BAY. AN AGREEMENT HAS BEEN REACHED WITH THE USACE THAT THE PIPELINE OWNERSHIP WILL BE TRANSFERRED TO THE USACE AND THE USACE WILL ABANDONED THE PIPELINE. A16B. AGUA RESPONSE: AGUA WAS NOT ABLE TO COMPLETE A FULL INVESTIGATION INTO THE INCIDENT. FOR 40 DAYS AGUA TRIED TO LOCATE THE LEAK BUT WERE UNSUCCESSFUL. WE SPENT NEARLY 4 MILLION DOLLARS IN THE PROCESS AND WERE ON THE VERGE OF BEING SUED BY MULTIPLE COMPANIES IN THE LAQUINTA CHANNEL, BECAUSE AGUA WAS INTERRUPTING THEIR BUSINESS OBLIGATIONS. DURING THE INCIDENT, THE USACE AND POCC WERE PUSHING AGUA TO SHUT IN THE PIPELINES AND REMOVE A SECTION THAT RUNS THROUGH THE CC SHIP CHANNEL. AGUA SURRENDERED THE PIPELINES TO USACE IN 2023. TO DATE, THE USACE HAS ALREADY PIGGED AND REMOVED THE SHIP CHANNEL SECTIONS LEAVING NO WAY TO CONTINUE ANY WORK ON THE REMAINING PIECES OF THE PIPELINES. THEREFORE IT IS UNNECESSARY FOR AGUA TO CREATE A PLAN TO PREVENT RECURRENCE. AGUA'S CONTRACTOR MR. RICHARD WATSON WITH WHITE MARLIN OPERATING ADVISED THAT REPAIR EQUIPMENT WOULD BEGIN ARRIVING OCTOBER 23, 2021, TO THE BROWNWATER DOCK IN ARANSAS PASS, TX FOR TRANSIT INCIDENT SITE. THE OPERATOR ATTEMPTED TO LOCATE THE FAILED SECTION OF PIPE WITH DIVERS AND A NITROGEN TRUCK LOCATE THE LEAK. THE DIVERS FAILED TO LOCATE THE LOCATION OF THE LEAK. THE OPERATOR'S FINANCIAL DEPARTMENT AND INSURANCE AGENCY ELECTED TO ABANDON THE INVESTIGATION PROJECT DUE TO FINANCIAL CONSTRAINTS. ON FEB. 25, 2022, THE OPERATOR NOTIFIED MR. NUERNBERG THAT THE CORP OF ENGINEERS IS TO ABANDON THE PIPELINE SYSTEM. IT WAS REPORTED THAT THE CORP OF ENGINEERS IS IN THE PROCESS OF PULLING THE T-4 PERMITS ON THE PIPELINE SYSTEM AND THE CORP OF ENGINEERS WOULD ALSO BE WORKING ON A PLAN TO CUT AND REMOVE THE SECTION OF PIPELINE IN THE SHIP CHANNEL. DUE TO THE OPERATOR BEING UNSUCCESSFUL IN LOCATING THE FAILED SECTION OF PIPELINE THE OPERATOR WAS UNABLE TO DETERMINE THE CAUSE OF THE FAILURE AND HAS NOT CREATED A PLAN TO PREVENT RECURRENCE.