CENTURION PIPELINE L.P.

Incident Narrative

ON NOVEMBER 6, 2021, AT 11:15AM CST, A CENTURION PIPELINE, L.P. (CPL) EMPLOYEE DISCOVERED A LEAK IN CPL'S MIDLAND STATION NEAR MIDLAND, TEXAS, IN MIDLAND COUNTY, TEXAS. CPL DETERMINED THE SOURCE OF THE LEAK TO BE THE MTF TERMINAL PUMP P-A1, ARCO METER #2 STRAINER AND PROMPTLY ISOLATED THE LEAK. FIVE (5) BARRELS OF CRUDE OIL WAS RELEASED AND RECOVERED. NO INJURIES, FATALITIES, OR FIRES WERE ASSOCIATED WITH THIS INCIDENT. CPL REPORTED THE LEAK TO TEXAS RAILROAD COMMISSION, OFFICE OF PIPELINE SAFETY AT 12:06PM CST ON NOVEMBER 6, 2021. AT THE TIME OF THIS WRITING, THE REPAIR HAS BEEN SCHEDULED AND THE ROOT CAUSE FAILURE ANALYSIS WILL BE CONDUCTED PENDING THE SAMPLE EXAMINATIONS. THE RESULTING INFORMATION RELATED TO THE CAUSE OF THE LEAK, PREVENTATIVE AND MITIGATIVE MEASURES (P&M), AND UPDATES TO COST, IF APPLICABLE, WILL BE SUBMITTED VIA SUPPLEMENTAL REPORT(S). SUPPLEMENTAL FINAL REPORT FILED ON DECEMBER 14, 2021: CPL'S DETAILED INVESTIGATION DETERMINED THAT UNDER-DEPOSIT MICROBIOLOGICALLY INFLUENCED CORROSION (MIC) CAUSED THE FAILURE. THE CONTRIBUTING FACTORS INCLUDE WATER DROP-OUT, SOLID DEPOSITS, AND PARAFFIN ACCUMULATION ON THE INTERNAL SURFACE OF THE STRAINER DRAIN PIPE, WHICH RESULTED IN INTERNAL CORROSION PITS THAT WEAKENED THE THREADED SECTION OF THE DRAIN PIPE UNTIL THE THREADS BROKE DURING NORMAL OPERATION. A PREVIOUS PERIOD OF STAGNANT CONDITIONS IN THE STATION PIPING ALLOWED WATER, SOLIDS, AND PARAFFIN TO DEPOSIT IN THE STRAINER DRAIN PIPE, AND A BACTERIA COLONY FORMED A MICROBIOLOGICALLY INFLUENCED CORROSION PIT. THE CORROSION RATE WITHIN THE PITS INCREASED DUE TO A GALVANIC COUPLE BETWEEN THE IRON SULFIDE AND IRON MAGNETITE COMPOUNDS, VERIFIED BY LAB ANALYSIS, AND THE STEEL PIPE. THE PARAFFIN ACCUMULATION PREVENTED THE INCOMING OIL THAT WAS TREATED WITH CORROSION MITIGATION AND BIOCIDE CHEMICALS FROM REACHING THE BACTERIA COLONY AND THE IRON SULFIDE AND DEPOSITS, THEREBY PREVENTING THE NORMAL ACTION OF THE CHEMICALS. IT MUST BE CONCLUDED THAT THIS CORROSION ON THE STRAINER DRAIN PIPE WAS NOT RELATED TO THE CHEMICAL TREATMENT OF THE CRUDE OIL OR TO ANY UNEXPECTED CORROSIVENESS OF THE CRUDE OIL. RECORDS SHOW THAT THE CRUDE OIL WAS UNIFORMLY TREATED WITH CORROSION CONTROL CHEMICALS AND BIOCIDES, BUT THE INCIDENT INSPECTION AND LAB ANALYSIS PROVED THAT THE CORROSION CONTROL CHEMICALS WERE PREVENTED FROM REACHING THE BIOFILM BY A LAYER OF WAXY PARAFFIN. THE FOLLOWING WILL OCCUR AS PART OF THE P&M MEASURE: 1. AN EVALUATION OF MIDLAND STATION PIPELINE AND THE SUBSETS A THROUGH C. A) IDENTIFY ALL PIPING AT MIDLAND STATION THAT MAY HAVE BEEN AFFECTED BY PREVIOUS PERIODS OF STAGNANT OR LOW FLOW CONDITIONS. B) DETERMINE WHICH LINES WILL BE REQUIRED FOR CURRENT AND FORESEEABLE OPERATIONAL AND COMMERCIAL COMMITMENTS. C) PRIORITIZE PIPING BASED OPERATIONAL AND COMMERCIAL COMMITMENTS. 2. MITIGATE POTENTIAL INTERNAL CORROSION DAMAGE AND REMOVE UNDERUTILIZED PIPING FROM SERVICE FOLLOWING COMPLETION OF STEP 1. A) REMOVE LOW FLOW PIPING FROM SERVICE THAT WILL NOT BE REQUIRED FOR ROUTINE OPERATIONS, WHICH COULD BE A TEMPORARY OR PERMANENT REMOVAL. B) REPLACE LOW FLOW PIPING THAT WILL BE REQUIRED FOR ROUTINE OPERATIONS. (PIPELINE REPLACEMENTS WILL BE PLANNED FOR FUTURE EXECUTION DEPENDING ON SCOPE OF WORK.) C) DEVELOP AN ENHANCED FLUSHING PROGRAM THAT WOULD INCLUDE PARAFFIN SOLVENTS AND BIOCIDES FOR PIPING REMAINING IN THE FLUSHING PROGRAM.