{"operation":"document","citation":"PI-16-0010","title":"Linde Engineering North America — Pipeline Safety Interpretation","source_type":"guidance","agency":"Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration","status":"guidance","official":true,"published_on":"2019-04-09","effective_on":null,"summary":"PI-16-0010 response to Linde Engineering North America concerning 193.2001, 193.2007.","machine_formats":{"json":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-pi-16-0010.json","markdown":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-pi-16-0010.md"},"app_url":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-pi-16-0010","source_url":"https://www.phmsa.dot.gov/sites/phmsa.dot.gov/files/docs/standards-rulemaking/pipeline/interpretations/71116/linde-pi-16-0010-04-09-2019-part-1932001-and-2007.pdf","body":"<<<PAGE 1>>>\n\nU.S. Department\nofTransportation\nPipeline and Hazardous Materials\nSafety Administration\n. APR - 9 2019\n1200 New Jersey Avenue SE\nWashington DC 20590\nMr. Georg H. Breuer\nLNG Product Manager\n6100 South Yale A venue\nSuite 1200\nTulsa, OK 74136\nDear Mr. Breuer:\nThis is in response to your letter to the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration\n(PHMSA) requesting an interpretation of 49 CFR §§ 193.2001 and 193.2007. Specifically, you\nasked if and to what extent a liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility would be subject to 49 CFR\nPart 193 regulations.\nIn the request letter, you stated that Linde Engineering North America (Linde) has developed a\ncryogenic process integrating LNG production into a natural gas liquids (NGL) recovery process.\nYou described the proposed facility as follows:\nThis process integration allows potentially for a higher recovery and throughput rate in\nthe NGL plant increasing the ethane and propane recovery... In addition, this process\nfacilitates the small-scale production of LNG (nominal capacity of 150,000 gpd) at\nefficiencies equal to the higher efficiencies of large-scale LNG production plants.1\n[F]or the purpose of the required interpretation the facility accommodating the NGL\nrecovery process shall be already existing, and either one, or both of the feed and residue\ngas pipelines connecting to, or from the facility ( according to 49 CFR 193 .2007 \"pipeline\nfacility\") shall be subject to the pipeline safety laws (49 U.S.C. 60101 et seq.) and to 49\nCFR 192 (reference is being made to 49 CFR 193.2001 (a)).\nWith regard to the boil-off gas from the LNG storage, it shall be noted that the volumetric\nflow rate of this stream is only in the magnitude of 0.1 - 0.4% of the volumetric flow rate\nof the residue gas generated by the NGL recovery process. The LNG product from the\nstorage is loaded on trucks to be sold in the merchant market.\nAny boil-off gas from the storage of the cryogenic LNG product is compressed and\nmixed with the residue gas stream of the NGL recovery process. The resulting gas stream\nis then further compressed and being discharged as residue gas of the NGL process.\n1 A diagram and a process flow sketch are provided to illustrate the processes.\nThe Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, Office of Pipeline Safety provides written clarifications of the Regulations (49 CFR\nParts 190-199) in the fonn of interpretation letters. These letters reflect the agency's current application of the 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\nOn September 19, 2016, you provided the following additional information via e-mail\ncommunications:\nUnderstanding that the LNG facility used in the transportation of gas by pipeline being\nsubject to the pipeline safety laws and Part 192, there are two cases of interest:\n(1) The feed gas would be from a Part 192 regulated pipeline, or\n(2) In case the feed gas is not from a Part 192 regulated pipeline, the residue gas\nwould be sent to a Part 192 regulated pipeline.\nYou also stated:\nIf the feed gas is not from a 192 pipeline, it would be from a non-regulated gathering line.\nThe NGL coming out of the recovery process will be intermediately stored and\nsubsequently transported by truck, rail or pipeline to be further used.\nAnalysis\nSection 193.2001 establishes the scope of Part 193. It states that the requirements of Part 193\napply to LNG facilities used in the transportation of gas by pipeline that is subject to Federal\nPipeline Safety Laws and regulations, 49 USC 60101 et seq. and 49 CFR Part 192. See 49 CFR §\n193.2001(a). The regulation also contains a list of exceptions that create further limitations on\nthe applicability of the Part 193 requirements to LNG facilities. See 49 CFR § 193.200l(b).\nAdditionally,§ 193.2007 defines LNG facility, LNG plant, and Pipeline facility, as follows:\nLNG facility means a pipeline facility that is used for liquefying natural gas or synthetic\ngas or transferring, storing, or vaporizing liquefied natural gas.\nLNG plant means an LNG facility or system of LNG facilities functioning as a unit.\nPipeline facility means new and existing piping, rights-of-way, and any equipment,\nfacility, or building used in the transportation of gas or in the treatment of gas during the\ncourse of transportation ..\nRegarding questions presented in your letter, we answer them as follows:\n· (1) Whether the LNG plant would be regulated under the 49 CFR Part 193 requirements?\nFor this question, you presented two scenarios. In first scenario, you indicated that the feed gas\nwould be delivered to the NGL plant from a regulated Part 192 pipeline, and in the second\nscenario, the feed gas would be delivered to the NGL plant from an unregulated pipeline, such as\na non-regulated gathering line.\nIn your letter, you described the feed gas as entering the NGL plant, where it is processed and\ntreated. After processing and treatment, the natural gas is sent from the NGL to the LNG plant\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\n3\nfor liquefaction via a Part 192 pipeline. Thus, regardless of whether the feed gas is delivered to\nthe NGL plant from a Part 192 pipeline or a non.regulated gathering line, it leaves the NGL plant\nvia a Part 192 pipeline and enters the LNG facility from a Part 192 pipeline, therefore, making\nthe LNG facility subject to the Part 193 regulations because it is used in the transportation of gas\nby pipeline.\n(2) If the LNG plant is regulated, whether the already existingfacility accommodating the\nNGL recovery process would be under the PHMSA regulations?\nIn this case, the NGL recovery process involves the processing and treatment of feed gas before\nit enters on the LNG plant. As long as there is a pressure controlling device upstream and\ndownstream of the NGL facility, the existing NGL processing facility is not subject to the\npipeline safety regulations (49 CFR Parts 190- 199), regardless of whether the LNG plant is\nregulated under 49 CFR Part 193. Specifically, the piping located downstream of the first\npressure control device entering the NGL facility and upstream of the last pressure control device\nleaving the facility, would not be subject to regulatory oversight under PHMSA Part 192 or 195.\nHowever, if a pipeline in the facility is predominantly used in transportation to bypass\nprocessing, it will be subject to the Federal pipeline safety regulations.\n(3) If the NGLfacility is regulated, the extent of the applicability, and the required\nimplementation of the respective regulations described in 49 CFR Part 193 for the\nfacility accommodating the NGL recovery process?\nAs mentioned above, the existing NGL facility would not be regulated by PHMSA under 49\nCFR Parts 192, 193 or 195, but if certain pipelines on the facility are predominantly used, in\ntransportation to bypass processing, those pipelines will be subject to the Federal pipeline safety\nregulations. The natural gas (residue) piping exiting the NGL plant downstream of, and\nincluding, the last pressure control device leaving the NGL facility would be regulated by\nPHMSA under 49 CFR Part 192. Additionally, ifNGL is transported by pipeline downstream\nfrom the NGL facility, then the downstream NGL pipeline would be regulated under 49 CFR\nPart 195 beginning at the last pressure control device leaving the NGL facility.\nTo identify the exact demarcation point as a means of clearly delineating regulatory oversight by\nclarifying boundaries for entering, leaving, and within NGL and LNG facilities, PHMSA\nsuggests that you contact PHMSA's regional office during design phase of your project.\nlfwe can be of further assistance, please contact Tewabe Asebe 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 4>>>\n\nOffice of P ipeline S afety (PHP-30)\nP HMS A\nU.S. Department of T ransportation\nAttn: Kristin Baldwin\n1200 New J ersey Avenue S E\nWa shington, DC 20590-0001\nO ur Ref.\nG eorg H. Br euer\nP hone\n+1.91 8.477. 1199\nF ax\n+1.918.477. 1100\nE-mail\ngeorg.breuer@linde.com\nD ate\n08/19/16\nRequest for Interpretation of 49 CFR Part 193\nDear Mrs. Baldwin,\nThis le tter is to request written interpretation of wording contained within 49 CFR Part 1 93 S ubpart A - G eneral,\nspecifical ly concerning 49 CFR §§ 193.200 1 and 193.2007.\nLinde En gineering North America, Inc. (L E NA) has developed a cryogenic process integrating Liquefied N atural Gas (L N G)\nproduction in to a Natural G as Liquids (N GL) recovery process. T his process integration allows potentially for a higher\nrecovery and throughput rate in the N GL plant increasing the ethane and propane recovery. T he higher recovery thereby\nis depending amongst other things mainly on the feed gas availability. F or this product being m arketed by L ENA as\nS tarLNG L ™ currently a patent is pendin g. In addition, this process facilitates the small-scale production of LNG (nominal\ncapacity of 150,000 gpd) at efficiencies eq ual to the higher efficiencies of large-scale LNG produc!ton plants.\nThe integration of the S tarLNGL1M process technology with the N G L plant and its working principle is il lustrated in the\nDiagram below.\n~ teflil[iM(\n-------------------------------------------\n• I\n,\nI\nI\nI\nI\nI\n..\nI\nI\nI\n'\n!Nb f'l,tnt\nSIJrl NC.I 11 lethnoloqy\n-------------------------------------------\nDiogrom\nLinde Engineering North America Inc.\nHouston Office Tulsa Office\n12140 Wickchester L ane\n6100 S . Yale Ave\nSuite 300\nSuite 1200\nHouston, TX 77079\nTulsa, OK 74136\nSelas Linde North America Hydro-Chem\nA D ivision of Linde Engineering North America Inc. S Sentry Parkway E ast Blue Bell, PA 19422 A Division of Linde Engineering North America Inc.\n125 Hickory Springs Ind. Blvd.\nCanton, GA 30142\n\n<<<PAGE 5>>>\n\nPage 2\nThe below more detailed Process F low Sketch in addition highlights the process streams of interest with regard to\nrequested interpretation.\nNGL Plant\nLNG Plant\n©\n0 Feed Gas\nResidue Gas\nC ompressor\n-\nC3 Refrigeration ~\n-\n. .\n© Boil-Off Gas\n. ..J\nBoil-Off Gas\nCompressor\nAir Coolers\n- · 1 Cryogenic V apor.\nCold Box\nI I\n. •............\n\"'\"4-+-+-\" :\n11\n.\n• .\n.\n.\n.\n11\n<Po--\nProcess Flow Sketch\nI:\n·····-········\nGenerally the S tarL NG L ™ process uses part of the already cryogenic vapor stream from the demeth anizer column of the\nNGL recovery process (1 ). T he cryogenic vapor stream, being ultimately a product of the feed gas (2) from the N GL\nrecovery process, is subsequently liquefied. The liquid C2+ fraction resulting from this is separated and sent back as\n\"liquid reflux\" to the NGL recovery process (3). The Cl fraction, i.e. LNG product is sent to storage (4) with a volume of 3-5\ndays of continuous production capacity.\nAny boil-off gas from the storage of the cryogenic LNG product is compressed and mixed (5) with the residue gas stream\nof the NGL recovery process. T he resulting gas stream is then further compressed and being discharged as residue gas (6)\nof the NGL process.\nA more detailed description of the process may be found in US Patent Application U S20140 1 8233 lA1.\n\n<<<PAGE 6>>>\n\nPage 3\nThereby for the purpose of the required interpretation the facility accommodating the NGL recovery process shall be\nalready existing, and either one, or both of the feed (2) and residue (6) gas pipelines connecting to, or from the facility\n(according to 49 CFR 193.2007 \"pipeline facility\") shall be subject to the pipeline safety laws ( 49 U.S.C. 601o1 et seq.) and\nto 49 CFR 192 (reference is being made to 49 CFR 193.200 1 (a)).\nWith regard to the boil-off gas (5) from the L NG storage it shall be noted that the volumetric flow rate of this stream is\nonly in the magnitude of 0.1 -0.4% of the volumetric flow rate of the residue gas generated by the NGL recovery process,\nthat it is being mixed with. The LNG product from the storage (4) is loaded on trucks to be sold in the merchant market.\nRequest for Interpretation of 49 CFR Port 193\nIn the light of the stipulations made in 49 CFR 2001 (b) (1) and (2), as well as 49 CFR 193.2007 regarding the definitions\n\"LNG facility\", \"LNG plant\" and \"Pipeline facility\", LENA is requesting an interpretation, if and to what extent the LNG\nfacility, LNG plant, or pipeline facility will be under the reg ulation of PHMSA having the authority to establish and enforce\nsafety standards for onshore L N G facilities as described in 49 CFR Part 193.\nSpeci fically:\n( 1) Wil l the LNG plant using StarLNGL™ process technology as indicated in above Diagram be under the regulation of\nPHMSA as described in 49 CFR Part 193; and\n(2) If so, will also the already existing facility accommodating the NGL recovery process as indicated in above\nDiagram become under the regulation of PHMSA; and\n(3) If so, please identify the extent of the applicability, and the required implementation of the respective\nreg ulations described in 49 CFR Part 193 for the facility accommodating the NGL recovery process.\nL E NA respectfully asks for the above requested guidance by PHMSA at the earliest date possible to allow the further\nmarketing and development of its new product.\nIf you have any questions, or require further detailed information, please do not hesitate to contact us at your earliest\nconvenience.\nThank you for your assistance.\nS incerely yours,\nGeorg H. Breuer\nLNG Product Manager\nNatural Gas and Refining","truncated":false,"body_characters":14460}