Pacific Gas & Electric could face millions of dollars in fines for “willful noncompliance” of a regulatory order issued after the Sept. 9, 2010, gas pipeline blast in San Bruno. The California Public Utilities Commission directed the utility to produce records revealing pressure fluctuations in pipelines. Gaps were found in documentation PG&E submitted March 15. “It has been six months since the tragedy in San Bruno and we are working diligently to improve pipeline safety,” CPUC executive director Paul Clanon stated March 16. He called the utility’s missing records “willful noncompliance,” adding PG&E “must do its part by fully and timely complying with our orders, or face penalties.” The PG&E San Bruno explosion and resulting fire occurred when a 30-inch natural gas pipeline ruptured. Eight people were killed and 38 homes were destroyed. In response, the CPUC opened an investigation of the incident. PG&E supplied records in response to the commission’s order after sifting through tens of thousands of boxes of documents. The utility rented San Francisco’s Cow Palace--home to bovines, Grateful Dead concerts, and circuses--to house and sort through the data in advance of this week’s deadline. “[H]undreds of PG&E employees and contractors, at times working in shifts seven days a week, 24 hours a day” went through 1.25 million documents, according to PG&E. In January, the CPUC directed the company to locate documents revealing the maximum allowable amount of pressure used in designated pipelines. It specifically ordered the release of documentation covering 1,805 miles of gas lines in heavily populated areas Next week, CPUC staff is expected to recommend that the commissioners slap penalties on the utility. Regulators have the authority to levy fines of $20,000 per violation, per day, with multiple violations potentially costing more than $1 million a day. Of the miles of pipeline of the same age or similar to the one that exploded in San Bruno, 150 miles of pressure test records were found missing. “[T]he current records analysis identified 699 pipeline segments--approximately 152 miles--for which PG&E has not located pressure test records and for which the records indicate the segments contain either” pre-1962 24- to 36-inch double submerged arc welded, or pre-1974 seamless pipe greater than 24 inches in diameter, according to a March 15 filing by PG&E attorneys to the CPUC. “By its action, PG&E not only is refusing to comply with the plain terms of the Commission’s orders and the [federal government]’s urgent safety recommendations, but worse, may be placing public safety in jeopardy,” Clanon wrote in a March 16 letter to PG&E’s president. The company, according to PG&E president Chris Johns, is “not satisfied with the results to date and will continue to search for and review our files for additional pressure test records and provide regular updates on our efforts.” He also promised to launch an “an aggressive inspection and field test plan.” Also this week, PG&E’s ratings were lowered to “negative” from “stable. Standard and Poor’s also revised the business profiles for both the parent and utility to “strong” from “excellent. It also affirmed its BBB+ corporate credit ratings on PG&E Corp. and the utility. The ongoing San Bruno “pipeline explosion investigation, combined with disputes over advanced metering and the failed June 2010 ballot initiative, has weakened the firm’s business profile,” Anne Selting, S&P credit analyst, stated March 16.
