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AOGCC fines Eni $110,000 for late tests
Kristen Nelson Petroleum News
The Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission has proposed fining Eni US Operating Co. $110,000 for late mechanical integrity tests. The commission said in a July 26 order that the notice of proposed enforcement action was based on Eni’s failure to test injection wells at its Nikaitchuq unit for mechanical integrity as required by regulation.
The commission said a review of injection well activities at Nikaitchuq found that 11 wells were not tested for mechanical integrity after initial tests at injection startup.
Eni met with the commission April 13 to discuss its internal review, outlining the root cause for missing mechanical integrity test deadlines and solutions.
The commission said Eni did not dispute the violation, but “referenced confusion about ownership of the mechanical integrity testing responsibilities within its drilling and production groups as a contributing factor to the missed tests.”
Eni said it was aware last October that 11 injection wells were past due for mechanical integrity testing, and alleged it began the process to complete required tests at that time. But the commission said the wells that were past due were not tested until Dec. 9-10.
Tests due beginning April 2016 The mechanical integrity tests were due beginning in April 2016, the commission said, and from April 1 through Dec. 1, 2016, an AOGCC inspector was at Nikaitchuq to witness various tests on six separate occasions. The commission was not notified that the injection well mechanical integrity tests were late - nor did Eni request additional time to complete the tests.
The commission said that “Eni failed to act in good faith because it knew the wells were out of compliance and failed to notify the AOGCC.”
The commission said the 11 injection wells passed the tests Dec. 9-10, tests which were witnessed by AOGCC. That mitigates the penalty, the commission said, to a single $10,000 civil penalty for each well.
In addition to the penalty, “Eni is required to develop and implement a tracking system for regulatory obligations, including an automated alert for approaching and past-due obligations, with notifications provided to Eni personnel responsible for the regulatory obligation,” the commission said, with results to be presented to AOGCC within three months of the July 26 decision.
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