| (3) Construction and maintenance data. The operator
shall retain for the life of the facility documents and records pertaining
to the drilling, mining, completion, major repairs, and workovers
of storage wells and testing of storage well integrity, and shall
transfer all such documents and records to any new owner and/or new
operator of the facility.
(4) Extension during investigation. Any documents or
records that contain information pertinent to the resolution of any
pending regulatory enforcement proceeding shall be retained beyond
the prescribed retention until the resolution of such proceeding.
(o) Testing and maintenance.
(1) Integrity tests for wells in salt domes with a
single casing string. Each hydrocarbon storage well drilled into a
salt dome and having a single casing string cemented to the surface
shall have the casing inspected by mechanical, ultrasonic, or magnetic
methods at least once every five years and after each workover that
involves physical changes to the cemented casing string.
(2) Integrity tests for wells other than those in salt
domes with a single casing string. Each hydrocarbon storage well shall
be tested for integrity prior to being placed into service, at least
once every five years, and after each workover that involves physical
changes to any cemented casing string. The following requirements
apply to all such integrity tests.
(A) A hydrocarbon storage well shall be tested for
integrity by the nitrogen-brine interface method or an alternative
approved by the Commission, or its designee.
(B) A test procedure shall be filed with the Commission
for approval at least 10 days before the test date.
(C) The operator shall notify the district office at
least five days prior to conducting any integrity test.
(D) A complete record of each integrity test shall
be filed in duplicate with the district office within 30 days after
testing is completed. The record shall include a chronology of the
test, copies of all downhole logs, storage well completion information,
pressure readings, volume measurements, temperature logs and readings,
and an explanation of the test results that addresses the precision
of the test in terms of a calculated leak rate.
(E) Storage well pressures shall be allowed to stabilize
to a rate of change of less than 10 psi in 24 hours before the testing
period begins.
(3) Storage wellhead and casing. Storage wellhead components
and casing shall be inspected at least once every 10 years for corrosion,
cracks, deformations or other conditions that may compromise integrity
and that may not be detected by the five-year test. The operator may
request an extension of up to five years from the Commission for good
cause. Factors the Commission may consider in determining good cause
pursuant to this paragraph include by are not limited to the age,
location, and configuration of the well; well and facility history;
operator compliance record; operator efforts to comply with this subsection;
and accuracy of inventory control.
(4) Product, fresh water, and brine surface piping.
Within one year of the effective date of this section, the operator
shall submit a piping integrity management plan for approval by the
Commission or its designee. Within three years of the effective date
of this section, or in conjunction with the storage well integrity
testing, all product, freshwater, and brine surface piping shall be
maintained according to the facility's piping integrity management
plan.
(5) Alternative monitoring. An operator may request
the Commission or its designee to approve storage well pressure monitoring
as an alternative to integrity testing for hydrocarbon storage wells
that are out of storage service. An out-of-service storage well must
be tested for integrity according to the procedures specified in paragraph
(2) of this subsection before it may be returned to storage service.
(p) Plugging.
(1) Plug on abandonment. A hydrocarbon storage well
shall be plugged upon permanent abandonment in a manner approved by
the Commission or its designee. A proposal for plugging shall be submitted
to the Commission in Austin for approval or modification prior to
plugging. Following approval of a plugging plan, the operator shall
file a notification of intent to plug at least five days prior to
commencement of plugging operations. A plugging report shall be filed
with the Commission in Austin within 30 days after plugging.
(2) Alternative monitoring. As an alternative to plugging
a hydrocarbon storage well that has been permanently deactivated,
an operator may request approval by the Commission or its designee
of a plan to convert the storage well to a monitor well. A pressure
monitoring plan must be submitted to the Commission along with the
request to convert the storage well to a monitoring well.
(q) Penalties.
(1) Penalties. Violations of this section may subject
the operator to penalties and remedies specified in the Texas Natural
Resources Code, Titles 3 and 11, and other statutes administered by
the Commission.
(2) Certificate of compliance. The certificate of compliance
for any underground hydrocarbon storage facility may be revoked in
the manner provided in §3.73 of this title (relating to Pipeline
Connection; Cancellation of Certificate of Compliance; Severance).
(r) Applicability of other Commission rules and orders.
The owner or operator of an underground hydrocarbon storage facility
is not relieved by this section of compliance with any other requirement
of Chapters 3, 4, 7, or 8 of this title (relating to Oil and Gas Division;
Environmental Protection; Gas Services Division; or Pipeline Safety
Regulations).
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| Source Note: The provisions of this §3.95 adopted to be effective January 1, 1994, 18 TexReg 8871; amended to be effective November 24, 2004, 29 TexReg 10728; amended to be effective January 30, 2007, 32 TexReg 289; amended to be effective July 2, 2012, 37 TexReg 4892 |
