Safety

Walter Oil & Gashas completed the first phase of plugging a natural gas well in the Gulf of Mexico that blew out in July, according to theInterior Department’sBureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement(BSEE). The well blowout partially destroyed a Hercules Inc. rig, but as responders were working on ways to prevent releases, the well naturally clogged with sand (seeDaily GPI,July 30). All of the debris from the original well had been removed as of Friday (Sept. 6), and no gas has been detected, BSEE said. Regulators said the original well would be reentered at a later date to set deeper, permanent plugs.

Responding in part to the derailment and explosion of a crude-laden tanker in Quebec in July, the Department of Transportation’s (DOT) Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) has proposed a rule aimed at improving the safety of the rail transportation of hazardous materials by tanker cars, as well as the rail transportation of shale oil.

The Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) and Interior’s Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) have signed an interagency agreement to develop a confidential reporting system for near-miss incidents on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS).

TransCanada Corp. won a national political boost Thursday for the proposed partial conversion of its natural gas Mainline to oil service from the Canadian Senate’s energy, environment and natural resources committee.

The Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Safety and Environmental and Enforcement (BSEE) has proposed a rule aimed at implementing industry best practices and updating regulations governing production safety systems and equipment used to collect and treat oil and natural gas from offshore production facilities.

An eight-month investigation has concluded that a fatal explosion and fire during a construction project last November on a Gulf of Mexico (GOM) oil production platform operated by Black Elk Energy Offshore Operations LLC occurred after contractors failed to follow standard safety practices.

Interior Secretary Sally Jewell Wednesday named former Vice Admiral Brian Salerno to direct the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE), which oversees oil and gas operations on the federal Outer Continental Shelf. Salerno, who retired from the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) last year as its Deputy Commandant for Operations, will assume his new post on Aug. 26, replacing James Watson.

Consumers Energy, one of Michigan’s largest natural gas utilities, has agreed to spend $1 million to create a response fund for natural gas disasters and to help train first responders following two deadly incidents in three years, Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette said Monday.

TheRailroad Commission of Texas(RRC) has approved rule amendments that increase pipeline safety and regulatory program fees. The changes are published in theTexas Registerand are out for public comment until Sept. 23. The annual pipeline safety inspection and gas utility regulatory fee is to increase from 75 cents per service line to $1.00 per service line, which is the statutory maximum. Based upon the 2012 reported total of 4,856,251 service lines, the 25-cent increase will result in an estimated $1.21 million in additional revenue, the RRC said. The additional revenue, along with funds from the base pipeline safety grant, will fund 20 additional full time-equivalent personnel for pipeline safety activities, including inspection of intrastate pipeline and pipeline facilities, as specified by SB 1, which was passed by theTexas Legislatureearlier this year.