| 06/17/2023 |
The (06/17/2023, C-129) application [229571] was assigned to this incident. |
| 06/17/2023 |
Additional Details provided by the operator: Gas Flare Meter |
| 06/17/2023 |
Corrective actions provided by the operator: Oxy is unable to take any corrective actions to eliminate the cause and potential reoccurrence of a downstream third-party owned and operated gas plant’s issues, as this is downstream of Oxy’s custody transfer point and out of Oxy’s control to foresee, avoid, prevent from happening or reoccur. San Mateo’s gas plant will have issues which may reoccur from time to time and may trigger a spike in the gas line pressure, which in turn, directly impacts Oxy’s ability to send gas to them. When San Mateo’s gas plant has equipment issues or greatly struggles to handle the volume of gas being sent to them by Oxy, San Mateo then restricts Oxy’s ability to send gas, which then prompts Oxy to route all its stranded gas not pushed into the San Mateo gas pipeline, to flare. OXY makes every effort to control and minimize emissions as much as possible. The only actions that Oxy can take and handle that is within its control, is to continually communicate with San Mateo personnel, who own and operate the sales gas pipeline, when possible, during these types of circumstances. |
| 06/17/2023 |
Primary Equipment identified by the operator (Other (Specify), with additional details: Emergency Flare > Third Party Downstream Activity > San Mateo Gas Plant > Weather-Related Power Outage > Equipment Issues) |
| 06/17/2023 |
Steps taken to prevent waste provided by the operator: It is OXY's policy to route its stranded gas to a flare during an unforeseen and unavoidable emergency or malfunction, that is beyond Oxy's control to avoid, prevent or foresee, to minimize emissions as much as possible as part of the overall steps taken to limit duration and magnitude of flaring. The flare at this facility has a 98% combustion efficiency to lessen emissions as much as possible. In this case, San Mateo Gas Plant, third party owned and operated downstream plant, shut in their gas plant due to severe weather affecting the area and causing power outages, which in turn caused high line pressure to occur, which then prompted the field to pressure up automatically and trigger flaring to occur at a gas gathering system flare. This event could not have been foreseen, avoided or prevented from happening as this event occurred with no advance notice or warning. As soon as flaring was triggered, field personnel engaged in Oxy’s third party pipeline operation curtailment reactive stratagems and assist with ensuring field area’s mitigation optimizers cut injection rates to wells in the field to reduce injection and sales gas across the area. In addition, as soon as flaring alarms were received by field personnel, they began to shut-in several wells across the area to assist with reducing field pressure so that it would stay below the flare trigger setpoints of the gas gathering system to cease flaring, which took some time to do. This event is out of OXY's control, yet OXY made every effort to control and minimize emissions as much as possible. |
| 06/17/2023 |
New incident created by the operator, upon the submission of a flaring of natural gas report. |
| 05/31/2023 |
The flaring of natural gas discovered by the operator. |