PHILLIPS 66 COMPANY - SWEENY REFINERY
gas_transmission Incident — — February 15, 2021
Incident Information
| Incident Date | February 15, 2021 |
| Operator | PHILLIPS 66 COMPANY - SWEENY REFINERY |
| Commodity | HYDROGEN GAS |
| Pipeline Type | gas_transmission |
Location
| State | |
| Coordinates | 29.07470, -95.73070 |
Cause
| Cause | EQUIPMENT FAILURE |
| Subcause | OTHER EQUIPMENT FAILURE |
Casualties
| Fatalities | 0 |
| Injuries | 0 |
Costs
| Property Damage | $4,000,000 |
| Emergency Response | $50,000 |
| Other Costs | $452,553 |
Location Map
Incident Narrative
ON 2/15/2021, A HYDROGEN RELEASE AND SUBSEQUENT FIRE OCCURRED AT THE SR-28 FM524 PIPELINE METER STATION. LOCAL REFINERY EMERGENCY RESPONSE TEAM RESPONDED AND SECURED THE AREA. THE PIPELINE WAS ISOLATED, AND THE FIRE EXTINGUISHED ITSELF. DURING WINTER STORM URI, THE SWEENY AREA WAS EXPERIENCING ABNORMAL FREEZING CONDITIONS THROUGHOUT THE AREA AND WIDESPREAD POWER OUTAGES WERE OCCURRING. AS A RESULT, THIRD PARTY HYDROGEN SUPPLY TO THE SWEENY REFINERY WAS REDUCED. THESE UPSETS RESULTED IN THE NEED TO EXPORT LARGER THAN NORMAL FLOW RATES ON THE SR-28 HYDROGEN PIPELINE. THE INCIDENT INVESTIGATION IDENTIFIED THAT THERE WAS EROSION OF THE FLOW TUBES IN THE 3-INCH CORIOLIS METER. THE INITIAL EVENT LED TO SUBSEQUENT FAILURES ON THE SKID INCLUDING THE CORIOLIS METER HOUSING, METER FLANGE, AN 8-INCH MANUFACTURED ELBOW, AND AN 8-INCH BYPASS LINE. THE METER STATION WILL BE REDESIGNED AND RECONSTRUCTED TO MINIMIZE THE RISK OF EROSION. PERMANENT REPAIRS SCHEDULED TO BE COMPLETED IN 2022. SUPPLEMENTAL FINAL UPDATE AS PER PHMSA AID WITH ESTIMATED COSTS OF FINAL REPAIR IN 2022.
About This Pipeline Incident
Pipeline incident data is reported to the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA). All significant incidents involving fatalities, injuries, or property damage over $50,000 must be reported.