The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) (Sacramento, California, USA) recently issued a staff citation imposing corrective actions and a $1.27 million fine to be paid to the state’s general fund by the shareholders of Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) (San Francisco, California, USA).
In a press release, CPUC charged PG&E with failing to promptly correct problems with systems used to prevent corrosion in natural gas infrastructure.
CPUC says it issued the citation after an investigation by its safety and enforcement division into PG&E’s failure to promptly remediate 127 pipeline locations with inadequate cathodic protection (CP), which is is required to protect certain natural gas pipeline infrastructure from corrosion. Not correcting the systems in a timely manner increases the risk of corrosion.
Under CPUC’s staff program, PG&E has 30 days to pay the fine and make the corrective actions, or request a hearing. Further information about the citation is available here.
CPUC’s safety and enforcement division is authorized to issue citations to regulated natural gas and electric companies for violating codes and regulations. Safety violations are identified through ongoing audits, inspections, and investigations; by utilities themselves through mandatory disclosure requirements; or through a whistleblower program for anonymous and protected reporting.
Source: CPUC, www.cpuc.ca.gov.