CENTURION PIPELINE L.P.

Incident Narrative

ON AUGUST 29, 2021, AT APPROXIMATELY 15:05 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 STATION PIPING AND PROMPTLY ISOLATED THE LEAK. HOWEVER, TEN (10) BARRELS OF CRUDE OIL WAS RELEASED. THE CONTAMINATED SOIL WILL BE REMEDIATED ON SITE. NO INJURIES, FATALITIES, OR FIRES WERE ASSOCIATED WITH THIS INCIDENT. CPL REPORTED THE LEAK TO THE TEXAS RAILROAD COMMISSION, OFFICE OF PIPELINE SAFETY AT 15:41 CST ON AUGUST 29, 2021, AND WAS ISSUED INCIDENT NUMBER 2480 IN REFERENCE TO THE INCIDENT. AT THE TIME OF THIS WRITING, THE REPAIR OF THE STATION PIPING IS SCHEDULED AND THE ROOT CAUSE FAILURE ANALYSIS WILL BE CONDUCTED PENDING THE REMOVAL OF THE DAMAGED PIPING SEGMENT AND SAMPLE EXAMINATIONS. THE RESULTING INFORMATION RELATED TO THE CAUSE OF THE LEAK, PREVENTATIVE AND MITIGATIVE MEASURES (P&M), AND COSTS ASSOCIATED WITH REPAIRING THE STATION PIPING WILL BE SUBMITTED VIA SUPPLEMENTAL REPORT(S). SUPPLEMENTAL REPORT FILED ON 11/30/2021: 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 AT THE 6 O'CLOCK POSITION OF THE MTF 8"" ROW 4 FILL LINE STATION PIPING. A PREVIOUS PERIOD OF STAGNANT CONDITIONS IN THE PIPING ALLOWED WATER, SOLIDS, AND PARAFFIN TO DEPOSIT ON THE BOTTOM OF THE PIPE, AND A BACTERIA COLONY FORMED A MICROBIOLOGICALLY INFLUENCED CORROSION PIT. THE CORROSION RATE WITHIN THE PIT INCREASED DUE TO A GALVANIC COUPLE BETWEEN THE IRON SULFIDE 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 DEPOSITS, THEREBY PREVENTING THE NORMAL ACTION OF THE CHEMICALS. IT MUST BE CONCLUDED THAT THIS CORROSION ON THE STATION PIPING 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.