Two US Department of Transportation agencies jointly proposed new rules governing the transportation of LNG via rail on Oct. 18. The Federal Railway Administration (FRA) and Pipeline & Hazardous Materials Safety Administration are seeking comments on possible changes to hazardous materials regulations governing LNG’s transportation in DOT-113 specification tank cars.
“This major rule will establish a safe, reliable, and durable mode of transportation for LNG, while substantially increasing economic benefits and our nation’s energy competitiveness in the global market,” PHMSA Administrator Skip Elliott said. Comments will be accepted for 60 days following the proposal’s publication in the Federal Register.
Currently, LNG may only be transported via rail in a portable tank with an approval from the FRA. However, federal hazardous materials regulations do authorize the DOT 113 specification tank car for other flammable cryogenic liquids, the agencies noted.
It is specifically designed for the transportation of refrigerated liquefied gases. This design specification may be similarly suitable for the transport of refrigerated LNG, they said.
The proposal reflects US President Donald Trump’s Apr. 10 executive order promoting energy infrastructure and economic growth. It noted that federal law currently allows LNG to be transported by truck and, with FRA approval, by rail “in United Nations portable tanks,” but existing DOT regulations do not allow its transportation in tank cars.
The order recognized growing US energy production coupled with increasing domestic and international gas demand. It directed Sec. of Transportation Elaine Chao to propose a rule within 100 days that would treat LNG the same as other cryogenic liquids and permit it to be transported in approved rail tank cars.
Because federal regulations currently do not authorize the DOT-113C140W specification for cryogenic hazardous materials transportation, PHMSA said it expects such a change to require “considerably more time and resources” to incorporate a new specification proposal.
‘Extensive review’
“The addition of this tank car specification warrants an extensive engineering review and evaluation, including consideration of the risk of release in a derailment and ignition when transported at these higher pressures,” it said.
“Treating LNG like other cryogenic materials that railroads already transport is a welcome development,” Charlie Riedl, executive director of the Center for Liquefied Natural Gas, told OGJ in an Oct. 21 e-mail.
“As we have seen in Japan’s long and safe history of moving LNG by rail, there are certainly benefits,” Riedl said. “The ability to move LNG by rail further strengthens natural gas’ flexibility in domestic markets, especially where pipeline infrastructure has been constrained, like the Northeast.”
Nick Snow
NICK SNOW covered oil and gas in Washington for more than 30 years. He worked in several capacities for The Oil Daily and was founding editor of Petroleum Finance Week before joining OGJ as its Washington correspondent in September 2005 and becoming its full-time Washington editor in October 2007. He retired from OGJ in January 2020.
