Memo: Internal — Pipeline Safety Interpretation

Page 1October 9, 1992 INFORMATION: Natural gas volume bottles Cesar De Leon, director Pipeline Safety Regulatory Programs, DPS-10 Lester D. Friesen, Regional Director Regional Office of Motor Carriers, HMC-06 Your memo of August 21, 1992 describes volume bottles that are filled with natural gas and permanently attached to truck trailers. Pipeline operators use volume bottles to provide temporary sources of gas when normal sources are interrupted. You asked whether the gas pipeline safety regulations in 49 CFR Part 192 apply to such bottles while they are transported over highways for refilling or for delivery to points of use. The Part 192 regulations apply to any facility that is used in the transportation of natural gas by pipeline, except for liquefied natural gas (LNG) facilities, which are covered by the regulations in 49 CFR Part 193. Accordingly, either Part 192 or Part 193 would apply to the volume bottles when they are in use in a natural gas pipeline system. The Part 192 and Part 193 regulations do not apply to volume bottles while the bottles are not part of a pipeline transportation system, as when they are transported over public highways. 92-10-09 1#