EL PASO NATURAL GAS CO

Incident Narrative

ON NOVEMBER 13, 2019 AT 11:04AM, KINDER MORGAN EMPLOYEES AT THE EL PASO NATURAL GAS (EPNG) KEYSTONE COMPRESSOR STATION HEARD GAS VENTING IN THE STATION YARD AND NOTICED TWO RELIEF VALVES ON LINE 3026 WERE RELIEVING. SMART-PIGGING ACTIVITIES WERE BEING PERFORMED AND OPERATIONS DETERMINED THAT THE PIG WAS STUCK RESULTING IN AN INCREASE IN PRESSURE ON THE LINE. OPERATIONS DETERMINED THAT THE PIG WAS STOPPED AT BLOCK VALVE 1, WHICH WAS CLOSED. THEY OPENED THE VALVE MANUALLY WHICH ALLOWED THE PIG TO RESUME ITS RUN AND THE GAS RELEASE WAS STOPPED. A TOTAL OF 11,048 MCF OF GAS WAS RELEASED. THE INVESTIGATION REVEALED THAT BLOCK VALVE 1 WAS INCORRECTLY LEFT IN THE CLOSED POSITION FOR THIS PIG RUN DUE TO A MISUNDERSTANDING OF ITS FUNCTIONALITY. A RECENT PROJECT HAD REPLACED THE VALVE ACTUATOR TO MAKE THE VALVE CAPABLE OF REMOTE OPERATION. THIS VALVE IS ON THE BOUNDARY OF THE HOBBS AND ODESSA OPERATIONS AREA. THE PSSR FOR THE PROJECT HAD ONLY BEEN PERFORMED WITH THE HOBBS AREA, BUT THE ODESSA AREA WAS USING THE VALVE IN THEIR PIGGING OPERATIONS. THE PSSR HAD NOT SUCCESSFULLY COMMUNICATED HOW THIS VALVE FUNCTIONS TO THE ODESSA AREA AT THE COMPLETION OF THE PROJECT. THIS RESULTED IN THE ODESSA AREA INCORRECTLY BELIEVING THIS VALVE WOULD OPEN AS THE PIG APPROACHED AND ULTIMATELY CAUSING THE OVERPRESSURE AND RELEASE OF GAS. IN ORDER TO PREVENT A REOCCURRENCE, BOTH HOBBS AND ODESSA AREA OPERATIONS PERSONNEL HAVE BEEN RETRAINED ON THE CORRECT OPERATION OF THIS VALVE.