{"operation":"document","citation":"PI-14-0019","title":"Freeport LNG — Pipeline Safety Interpretation","source_type":"guidance","agency":"Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration","status":"guidance","official":true,"published_on":"2015-04-07","effective_on":null,"summary":"PI-14-0019 response to Freeport LNG concerning 192.631, 193.2707.","machine_formats":{"json":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-pi-14-0019.json","markdown":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-pi-14-0019.md"},"app_url":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-pi-14-0019","source_url":"https://www.phmsa.dot.gov/sites/phmsa.dot.gov/files/legacy/interpretations/Interpretation%20Files/Pipeline/2015/140019.pdf","body":"<<<PAGE 1>>>\n\nU.S. Department of Transportation\nPipeline and Hazardous Materials\nSafety Administration\n1200 New Jersey Ave, S.E.\nWashington, D.C. 20590\nMr. John A. Jacobi\nG2 Partners, LLC for\nFreeport LNG\n10850 Richmond A venue\nHouston, TX 77042\nAPR 0 7 2015\nDear Mr. Jacobi:\nIn a letter to the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) dated\nOctober 8, 2014, on behalf of Freeport LNG Development, L.P. (FLNG), you requested an\ninterpretation of the applicability of the control room management regulations in\n49 CFR 192.631 to a natural gas pipeline monitored and controlled via a control center in a\nliquefied natural gas (LNG) import terminal subject to 49 CFR Part 193.\nYou stated that FLNG owns and operates an LNG import terminal located in Quintana, TX and\nhas a Control Center from which facility operations and warning devices are monitored as\nrequired under Part 193. You noted that the FLNG controllers are subject to the Operator\nQualification (OQ) requirements under§ 193.2707 and that they are similar to the Part 192 OQ\nrequirements.\nAssociated with the Freepmi LNG Import Terminal is a 9.7 mile intrastate 42-inch natural gas\ntransmission pipeline (the \"FLNG pipeline'') that connects the terminal to the Stratton Ridge\nmeter station for delivery or storage regulated by the Texas Railroad Comission. You stated the\nFLNG pipeline does not have an independent supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA)\nsystem, an independent control room or any controllers other than those provided by the FLNG\nControl Center. You explained that all monitoring and control associated with the FLNG\npipeline is performed by the FLNG Control Center, in which we presume those pipeline\nmonitoring and control functions arc enabled by a SCADA or similar system.\nYou referenced the discussion in the preamble to the Control Room Management final rule\n(74 FR 63310; December 3, 2009) indicating that LNG terminals should not be subject to the\ncontrol room management requirements established by the rule. You expressed the view that\nsince an LNG terminal ordinarily would not be subject to the control room management\nrequirements, a gas transmission pipeline such as the FLNG pipeline connected to an LNG\nterminal also should not be subject to the control room management requirements.\nAs you correctly noted, the rule does not apply to LNG terminal controllers that control the\noperations of LNG terminal facilities and equipment. In this case, however, control of the FLNG\npipeline, which departs the grounds of the terminal, is the issue. Since the FLNG pipeline is a\ngas transmission pipeline regulated under Part 192 and controlled by a SCADA system, the Part\n192 control room management requirements do apply insofar as the terminal controllers are\ncontrolling this pipeline regardless of the fact that the location of such control happens to be on\nThe Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, Office of Pipeline Safety provides written clarifications of the Regulations (49 CFR\nParts 190-199) in the form of interpretation letters. These letters reflect the agency's current application ofthe regulations to the specific facts\npresented by the person requesting the clarification. Interpretations do not create legally-enforceable rights or obligations and are provided to\nhelp the public understand how to comply with the regulations.\n\n<<<PAGE 2>>>\n\n2\nthe grounds of an LNG terminal. Accordingly, in addition to meeting the control center\nrequirements in § 193.2441 for terminal operations. the control room management requirements\nin§ 192.631 must be met with respect to the control of the FLNG pipeline.\nIfwe can be offurther assistance, please contact Tewabe Asebe of my staff at 202-366-5523.\nDirector, Office of Standards\nand Rulemaking\nThe Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, Office of Pipeline Safety provides written clarifications of the Regulations\n(49 CFR Parts 190-199) in the form of interpretation letters. These letters reflect the agency's current application of the regulations to the\nspecific facts presented by the person requesting the clarification. Interpretations do not create legally-enforceable rights or obligations and\nare provided to help the public understand how to comply with the regulations.\n\n<<<PAGE 3>>>\n\nG2 PARTNERS\nOctober 8, 2014\nMr. John Gale, Director\nStandards & Rulemaking\nOffice of Pipeline Safety\nPipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHP-30)\nU.S. Department of Transportation\n1200 New Jersey Avenue S.E.\nWashington, DC 20590-0001\nRe: Request for Interpretation under 49 CFR Part 193\nDear Mr. Gale:\nVIA E -Mail\nBackground:\nFreeport LNG Development, L.P. (FLNG) owns and operates an LNG Import Terminal located at 1500\nLamar St, Quintana TX 77451 that is regulated under 49 CFR Part 193 (OPID 32206, Unit ID 70464).\nUnder 49 CFR §193.2441, FLNG has a Control Center from which operations and warning devices are\nmonitored as required under Part 193. The FLNG Control Center is the equivalent of a Control Room as\ndefined by 49 CFR 192.3 (\"Control room means an operations center staffed by personnel charged with\nthe responsibility for remotely monitoring and controlling a pipeline facility.\"). All FLNG controllers are\nsubject to Operator Qualification requirements under 49 CFR §193.2707. The Operator Qualification\nrequirements under 49 CFR §193.2707 are substantially equivalent to the Operator Qualification\nrequirements under 49 CFR Part 192, Subpart N.\nAssociated with the Freeport LNG Import Terminal is a 9.7 mile intrastate 42\" natural gas pipeline (the\n\" FLNG pipeline\" ) that connects the Freeport LNG import Terminal to the Stratton Ridge meter station for\ndelivery or storage (map attached). As an intrastate pipeline entirely within the state of Texas, the FLNG\npipeline is regulated by the Texas Railroad Commission.\nThe FLNG pipeline does not have an independent SCADA system, an independent control room or any\ncontrollers other than those provided by the FLNG Control Center and regulated under 49 CFR Part 193.\nAll monitoring and control associated with the FLNG pipeline is performed by the FLNG Control Center\nand is regulated under 49 CFR Part 193.\nControl Room Management Regulatory History:\nThe 49 CFR Parts 192 and 195 Control Room Management/Human Factors Rule was published\nDecember 3, 2009 (Docket ID PHMSA-2007-27954; Arndt. Nos. 192-112 and 195-93, 74 FR 63310-\n63330). The issue of the applicability of control room management to Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG)\nfacilities was expressly addressed in the final rulemaking. That discussion is relevant to the request that\n\n<<<PAGE 4>>>\n\nRequest for 49 CFR Part 193 Interpretation\nOctober B, 2014\nPage 2\nG2 PARTNERS\nis offered below, therefore the entire section of the preamble to the final rule relating to the exclusion\nof LNG facilities from Parts 192 and Part 195 is reproduced below. (74 FR 63316 and 63317)\n\"A. Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Facilities\nThe joint trade associations; the Iowa Utilities Board; 11 LNG facility and gas pipeline operators;\nAGA; APGA; and one individual opposed addition of requirements into 49 CFR part 193\naddressing LNG facilities.\nAGA and the LNG facility operators stated that the LNG facilities should not be included in the\nfinal rule because: (1) It was not the intent of Congress or the NTSB to include LNG in this\nregulation; (2) Congress expressly limited the CCERT study in the Pipeline Safety Act of 2002 to\nthree pipeline facilities; (3) LNG facilities were not to be included in the pilot study; (4) LNG\nfacilities are operated as plant sites with local control rooms; (5) Almost all of the text in the\nproposed amendments to 49 CFR part 193 is copied verbatim from the language for gas and\nhazardous liquid pipelines, but many of the requirements that are logical for pipelines make no\nsense in operating LNG plants; (6) The agency's own Regulatory Impact Analysis {RIA) study of\nthe proposed rule clearly demonstrates no benefit that would offset the cost of including LNG\nfacilities in the NPRM; (7) LNG facilities are regulated by 49 CFR part 193 and NFPA 59A, as\nincorporated by reference; and (8) The very detailed proposed control room rule creates\nconfusion when added to the existing regulations. AGA and the joint trade associations\nsuggested that PHMSA should initiate a separate rulemaking action focused on issues relevant\nto LNG facilities if it concludes that control room management requirements are needed for\nthese facilities.\nAgency response--PHMSA agrees that the PIPES Act requirement regarding control room\nmanagement does not explicitly refer to LNG facilities, nor are such facilities referenced in the\nPSIA legislation with regard to the controller certification pilot study. Similarly, NTSB did not\naddress LNG facilities in its SCADA safety study and related recommendations. At the same time,\nneither Congress nor NTSB explicitly stated that control room management requirements should\nnot be included for LNG facilities. Given the broad authority of PHMSA to regulate pipeline\nsafety, including the safety of LNG facilities, the silence of the PIPES Act and the NTSB safety\nstudy with respect to LNG is not, by itself, a compelling reason why these facilities should be\nexcluded from this rulemaking. However, through further review and consideration of the\ncomments, PHMSA has determined that LNG should not be included in this rulemaking action\nat this time. [emphasis added]\nAfter considering the comments and re-evaluating the basis for applying the same requirements\nto part 193 for LNG facilities, PHMSA is persuaded that there are several reasons why we should\nnot have used the same requirements. LNG facilities are different from pipelines. As pointed out\nby commenters, LNG facilities exist on a single site, rather than dispersed over hundreds or\nthousands of miles, and LNG controllers thus have different knowledge of and working\nresponsibilities for facility equipment. LNG controllers can, and do, walk to \"field\" equipment\nwithin minutes to monitor its condition or take local operating actions, whereas pipeline\nG2 Partners, LLC\n10850 Richmond Avenue, Suite 200 • Houston, Texas 77042\nTel 713.260.4000 • Fax 713.260.4099\n\n<<<PAGE 5>>>\n\nRequest for 49 CFR Part 193 Interpretation\nOctober 8, 2014\nPage 3\nG2 PARTNERS\ncontrollers may 'interact' with field equipment only via their SCADA systems. Because they\noperate equipment locally, LNG controllers have better operational knowledge of the\nequipment in their facilities, including its possible failure modes, than do most pipeline\ncontrollers. All of these differences diminish the value in improved safety that would result from\nimplementing the proposed requirements at LNG facilities.\nIn addition, the regulations in part 193 do not parallel precisely those in the other parts. For\nexample, part 193 includes specific requirements applicable to control centers \\5\\ (49 CFR\n193.2441) that were not in parts 192 or 195 prior to this rule making. This could create some\ndegree of overlap, and potential confusion, if the requirements included in this final rule for\nParts 192 and 195 were also incorporated into part 193. PHMSA thus has not included\nrequirements for part 193 in this final rule.\n\\5\\ Control centers is the term used in part 193 to refer to what are called control rooms in this\ndocument.\"\nApplicability to FLNG pipeline:\nAs of today, PHMSA has yet to change its position that LNG facilities should not be subject to 49 CFR\nParts 192 and 195 control room management requirements. Clearly, the FLNG import terminal is not\nsubject to the control room management requirements of 49 CFR §192.631.\nThe FLNG pipeline is only 9.7 miles long and entirely within the state of Texas. The FLNG Import\nTerminal controllers have an intimate operational knowledge of the FLNG pipeline and FLNG personnel\nare available 24/7 for immediate dispatch. The furthest point on the FLNG pipeline is only minutes away\nfrom the FLNG Import Terminal should an incident occur. For control room management purposes, the\nFLNG pipeline is part of the FLNG Import Terminal\nIn all other respects , the FLNG pipeline has been and is being treated as a 49 CFR Part 192 gas\ntransmission line.\nConclusion:\nThe FLNG pipeline is ancillary to the FLNG import terminal and is entirely controlled by the FLNG Import\nTerminal control center. Therefore, the FLNG pipeline should not be subject to the control room\nmanagement requirements of 49 CFR §192.631.\nG2 P artners, LLC\n10850 Richmond Avenue, Suite 200 • Houston, Texas 7704 2\nTel 71 3.260.4000 • Fax 7 13.260.4099\n\n<<<PAGE 6>>>\n\nRequest for 49 CFR Part 193 Interpretation\nOctober 8, 2014\nPage 4\nG2 PARTNERS\nRequest:\nPlease confirm that the FLNG pipeline may be considered part of the FLNG import terminal for purposes\nof control room management.\nShould you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact me at 832-712-3098 or via e-mail at\njohn.jacobi@g2partnersllc.com ..\nYour prompt attention to this matter would be greatly appreciated.\nAttachment\ncc: Mike Stephenson, Regulatory Compliance Specialist\nFreeport LNG\nG2 Partners, LLC\n10850 Richmond Avenue, Suite 200 • Houston, Texas 77042\nTel 71 3.260.4000 • Fax 713.260.4099\n\n<<<PAGE 7>>>\n\nFREEPORT LNG PIPELINE\nFreeport LNG Stratton Ridge\nMeter Station\nStratton Ridge Pig Receiver\nMain Line Block Valve\nFreeport LNG Compression Facility\n(Associated With Underground Storage of Natural Gas)\nFreeport LNG Terminal","truncated":false,"body_characters":13448}