{"operation":"document","citation":"PHMSA-2008-0143","title":"Southern LNG — Pipeline Special Permit","source_type":"permit","agency":"Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration","status":"current","official":true,"published_on":"2009-01-08","effective_on":"2009-01-08","summary":"PHMSA-2008-0143, issued 2009-01-08 for Southern LNG's lng system.","machine_formats":{"json":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-special-permit-phmsa-2008-0143.json","markdown":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-special-permit-phmsa-2008-0143.md"},"app_url":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-special-permit-phmsa-2008-0143","source_url":"https://www.regulations.gov/docket/PHMSA-2008-0143","body":"PHMSA pipeline special permit PHMSA-2008-0143. Operator: Southern LNG. System: LNG. Issue date: 2009-01-08.\n\n<<<PAGE 1>>>\n\n......\n1\nU.S. DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION\nPIPELINE AND HAZARDOUS MATERIALS SAFETY ADMINISTRATION (PHMSA)\nSpecial Permit Analysis and Findings\nPurpose:\nThe Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) provides this document\nto describe the relevant facts of the special permit request outlined below, to discuss any public\ncomments received regarding the special permit request, to present the safety analysis\naccomplished with regards to the special permit request, and to list the findings of that analysis.\nThis document is used to justify the grant of a special permit to Southern LNG, Inc. (SLNG) for\nthe Elba Island III Terminal Expansion Project, Elba Island, Savannah, Georgia, waiving\ncompliance from the Federal pipeline safety regulations in 49 CFR § 193.2301.\nSpecial Permit Information:\nDocket Number:\nPHMSA-2008-0143\nPipeline Operator:\nSouthern LNG, Inc.\nDate Requested:\nApnl 28, 2008\nCode Section(s):\n49 CFR § 193.2301\nSystem Affected: This special permit request pertains to the Southern LNG, Inc. (SLNG), Elba\nIsland III Terminal Expansion Project, Elba Island, Savannah, Georgia\nSpecial Permit Request\nOn April 28, 2008, SLNG requested a waiver of compliance from the Federal pipeline safety\nregulations in 49 CFR § 193.2301 for a 1.25 million barrel (nominal) liquefied natural gas\n(LNG) storage tank at its LNG import terminal at Elba Island, Savannah, Georgia. The tank is\nbeing constructed as part of the Elba Island III Terminal Expansion Project. The existing\nregulations in § 193.2301 require LNG tank welds to undergo radiographic examination. SLNG\nproposes instead to use ultrasonic examination (UT). According to SLNG, the examination\nwould consist \"of full semi-automated and manual UT examination using shear wave probes and\na volumetric UT examination using a combination of creep wave (CW) probes and focused\nangled longitudinal wave (ALW) probes.\"\n\n<<<PAGE 2>>>\n\n2\nPublic Notice:\nOn June 23, 2008, PHMSA posted a notice of this special permit request in the Federal Register\n(73 FR 35437). We did not receive any comments for or against this special permit request as a\nresult of this notice. The request letter, Federal Register notice and all other pertinent documents\nare available for review in Docket No. PHMSA-2008-0143 in the Federal Docket Management\nSystem (FDMS) located on the Internet at www.Regulations.gov.\nAnalysis:\nThe Federal pipeline safety regulations require each LNG facility constructed after March 31,\n2000, to comply with 49 CFR Part 193 and the National Fire Protection Association's Standard\n59A (NFPA 59A), 2001 Edition. The NFPA 59A, 2001 Edition requires that welded LNG\ncontainers designed for not more than 15 pounds per square inch gauge (psig) comply with the\nEighth Edition, 1990, of American Petroleum Institute Standard 620 (API 620), \"Design and\nConstruction of Large, Welded, Low-Pressure Storage Tanks (Appendix Q). \" The Eighth Edition\nof API 620, in turn, calls for the full radiographic examination of all vertical and horizontal butt\nwelds associated with the container.\nThe NFPA issued a Tentative Interim Amendment to the NFPA 59A, 2006 Edition, effective\nFebruary 14, 2006 (59A TIA06). The amendment incorporates API 620, Tenth Edition, 2002,\nAddendum 1, 2004, which adds ultrasonic examination (UT) as an acceptable non-destructive\ntesting method for LNG storage tank welds. The addendum states, \"the term\n'examination'.. shall be understood to refer to radiographic or ultrasonic examination.\"\nFindings:\nPHMSA finds that granting this special permit to SLNG to use UT to non-destructively test the\nwelds on a newly constructed LNG storage tank at the Elba Island Terminal, Savannah, Georgia,\nis not inconsistent with pipeline safety. Doing so will provide a level of safety equal to, or\ngreater than, that which would be provided if the welds were examined using the radiographic\nexamination as currently required by the pipeline regulations in 49 CFR § 193.2301.\nWe do so because the special permit analysis shows the following:\n\n<<<PAGE 3>>>\n\n3\n1. Both the API and the NFPA have approved ultrasonic testing as an acceptable method to\nnon-destructively test welds on LNG storage tanks.\n2. SLNG will complete the non-destructive weld testing in accordance with API 620, 10th\nEdition, February 2002, Addendum 1, Appendix U, June 2004.\nJAN 0 8 2009\nCompleted in Washington DC on:\n\n<<<PAGE 1>>>\n\nof Transportation\nU.S. Department\nWashington, D.C. 20590\n1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE\nPipeline and Hazardous\nMaterials Safety\nAdministration\nJAN\n8 2009\nMr. Patrick F. Carey, P.E.\nEl Paso Pipeline Group\n1001 Louisiana Street\nHouston, TX 77252-2511\nDocket No. PHMSA-2008-0143\nDear Mr. Carey:\nOn April 28, 2008, you wrote to the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration\n(PHMSA) on behalf of Southern LNG, Inc. (SLNG) requesting a special permit to waive\ncompliance from PHMSA's pipeline safety regulation 49 CFR § 193.2301 for the Elba Island III\nTerminal Expansion Project, Elba Island, Savannah, Georgia. The regulation requires the use of\nradiography to examine the welds on liquefied natural gas (LNG) storage tanks.\nPHMSA is granting this special permit (enclosed) to SLNG. The special permit allows SLNG to\nuse ultrasonic testing (UT) to non-destructively test the welds on a newly constructed ING\nstorage tank at the Elba Island Terminal. This special permit has conditions and limitations and\nprovides some relief from the Federal pipeline safety regulations for SLNG while ensuring that\npipeline safety is not compromised.\nMy staff would be pleased to discuss this special permit or any other regulatory matter with you.\nJohn Gale, Director of Regulations (202-366-0434), may be contacted on regulatory matters and\ncontacted on technical matters specific to this special permit.\nAlan Mayberry, Director of Engineering and Emergency Support (202-366-5124), may be\nSincerely,\nMartial y\nfer:\nJeffrey D. Wiese\nAssociate Administrator for Pipeline Safety\nEnclosure: Special Permit\n...","truncated":false,"body_characters":6112}