Frequently Asked Questions
General LNG
General Project
- 250+ construction jobs on site
- 300+ indirect jobs generated by associated economic activity of construction
- 125 jobs through economic activity once facility is operational
- 18 jobs at the facility
In addition, the PSE LNG facility will generate millions of dollars in tax revenue for local schools, city services including fire safety and roads, and other state and local government services.
Environment
No. When used as a fuel, LNG improves air quality and reduces health risks. When replacing diesel fuel, it reduces sulphur dioxide (SOx) emissions by over 98%, harmful particulate matter produced by ships by more than 85%, nitric oxide and nitrogen dioxide (NOx) emissions by nearly 85% and greenhouse gas emissions by nearly 15%.
Using LNG as fuel also eliminates the potential for harmful diesel fuel spills in Commencement Bay. In the unlikely event of a spill in the water, LNG turns into vapor and dissipates with no lasting effects on water or marine life.
The majority of the natural gas in North America comes from hydraulic fracturing (fracking) and the debate regarding its effect on the environment will continue. As a local natural gas distribution company, we have no natural gas wells of our own and buy 100% of the gas we distribute.
Over 800,000 of our customers choose to use natural gas in their homes and businesses. We strongly support rules and regulations that ensure wells are safely operated to protect ground water and eliminate leaks from wellhead to end-use.
Safety
The explosion videos on YouTube are actually liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) not LNG. Some have erroneously been shared online as “LNG” explosions, but they are not LNG. LPG is propane, butane, or a mixture of the two. It is heavier than air in both liquid and vapor state, which makes it more difficult to disperse than natural gas and; therefore, more prone to catch fire or explode if a leak occurs.
The properties of LPG are very different from those of liquefied natural gas (LNG). LPG is a mixture of propane and butane and is heavier than air. Liquefied natural gas (LNG) is mostly made up of methane and at room temperature is lighter than air.
In addition, LNG is not explosive in an unconfined space. Although substantial energy is stored in LNG, it cannot be released rapidly enough to cause the overpressures associated with an explosion in an unconfined area (similar to what can be seen on the LPG tanker crash video seen on the YouTube video).
www.lngworldnews.com/clng-lng-not-cause-of-truck-explosion-in-china
Boiling Liquid Expanding Vapor Explosion (BLEVE) is a common risk to single walled, uninsulated, pressurized propane tanks such as those at gas stations or on your backyard BBQ. It does not apply in any way to the LNG tank at the Tacoma facility.
A BLEVE occurs when a nearby fire causes an already pressurized gas tank to increase beyond the capabilities of the tank pressure relief valve. When the tank fails, the product releases into the nearby fire – hence an explosion.
The LNG tank at the Tacoma facility is not pressurized and is highly insulated, therefore, will not be susceptible to BLEVE. In fact, no LNG tank has ever experienced a BLEVE.
Per federal regulation, any possible leaks, spills, fires, and explosions must all be contained on the project site of 33 acres. Software simulations showed the largest fire scenario at the facility results in a thermal exclusion zone with a radius of 550 feet. The only possibility of explosion is from the refrigerant used to cool the gas. This has a pressure wave radius of approximately 230 feet. Both of these scenarios are contained on the project site per federal regulations.
PSE has provided multiple regulatory agencies and the Puyallup Tribe with detailed drawings of our thermal and vapor exclusion zones, as well as the calculations behind them. These drawings are restricted from public release by Critical Energy Infrastructure Information (CEII) regulations.
Partial list of agencies provided siting report:
- US DOT Pipeline and Hazardous Material Safety Administration [PHMSA]
- Washington State Office of Pipeline Safety
- City of Tacoma
- US Army Corps of Engineers
The map labeled “true” on the LNG website was produced by PSE. It was created by using the software and failure methodology required by U.S. Federal law when siting an LNG facility, therefore, yes, this map is based on science. The software used was LNGFIRE (calculates thermal radiation), Phast (calculates 2-dimentional vapor dispersion) and FLACS (models 3-dimentional vapor dispersion).
The other maps provide no citations or reference the criteria used in their creation. They are not factual information about the Tacoma LNG facility.
As we have seen here in the U.S. and all over the world, anything can be a terrorist target from transportation facilities and large buildings to hotels and market squares. Any energy facility could be a potential target.
Regardless, the facility has many safety elements designed into the facility. These details have been shared with all regulatory agencies responsible for ensuring the public’s safety. Since 9/11, the Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission have ruled certain safety information cannot be shared with the general public in order to safeguard it from falling into the wrong hands.
Federal regulations prescribe the seismic requirements for the tank and entire facility and are much more stringent than the requirements for bridges and overpasses. The construction will exceed the design standard to withstand an earthquake expected every 2450 years with no loss of LNG.
In developing the seismic criteria, three earthquake sources were taken under consideration (Seattle Fault, Tacoma Fault, and Cascade Subduction Zone) and the most severe elements were taken from each and combined.
The new high standard for bridge and highway infrastructure today is to build it to withstand a 1000 year earthquake. The Tacoma LNG facility exceeds that standard and is designed to withstand an earthquake that is expected to happen every 2450 years and still result in no loss of LNG. We are proud to help bring a safer and more environmentally friendly fuel to the Northwest.
The entire facility will be constructed on top of ground improvements that consist of over 2,000 three foot diameter concrete columns extending to a depth of 80 to 100 feet. These columns create an island of improved soil that will remain in place during an earthquake. In addition, the tank will be set on 88 foundation isolators which will further minimize any shaking motion to the tank.
PSE Tacoma facility |
Plymouth facility |
|
Storage capacity |
8,000,000 gals | 29,000,000 gals (2 tanks with 14,500,000 gals each) |
Tank construction |
Full-containment (nickel-steel encased in 2 to 3 feet of concrete) | Single-wall |
Use |
Peak-shaving & LNG fueling for marine vessels | Peak-shaving |
The Washington State Utilities and Transportation Commission (WUTC) released the accident investigation report of the March 2014 Plymouth incident in early May 2016.
The WUTC determined the cause of the explosion was not in the LNG components of the facility – it was in the area handling natural gas from the pipeline. The LNG did not explode or burn and the incident was contained to the project site.
Purpose
No, the LNG facility is not an export facility. It is designed and permitted to meet the needs of PSE’s gas utility customers by providing additional gas supply during times of peak demand and to provide a cleaner alternative to diesel and marine fuels used by the transportation industry.
As an example, an average LNG carrier (i.e., an ocean-going tanker ship designed to transport export volumes) holds approximately 43 million gallons, while the PSE LNG facility has storage for 8 million gallons. At full production, the facility is capable of producing 250,000 gallons per day. Even if the plant was entirely dedicated to filling an LNG carrier, it would take approximately 6 months to fill a single ship.
When TOTE’s contracted fuel requirements and PSE’s own LNG storage requirements are taken into consideration, it would take over a year to fill a carrier. Recent data suggests there are about 360 LNG tankers in service worldwide, with a going price of around $200 million each, so waiting a year to take on a single cargo load is not an economically feasible or realistic scenario.
The Sabine Pass export terminal can currently produce 7,770,000 gallons per day (as compared to 250,000 gallons per day for the Tacoma facility) and has another 38 million gallons per day of liquefaction capacity currently under construction and expected to be on line within 2 years.
The Tacoma LNG facility is much smaller in scale and has an entirely different purpose than an export facility. The Tacoma facility is not an export facility, but will meet the needs of PSE’s local gas utility customers by providing additional gas supply during times of peak demand. It will also be a fueling facility for a limited number of ships switching to clean LNG fuel from much dirtier burning diesel.
The Tacoma LNG facility is not an export facility. It is too small to compete with facilities designed for the export market.
LNG will not be shipped out of the PSE facility. It is not an export terminal. It will store LNG for local use by PSE customers during the cold winter months and it will be a fueling facility for marine and other transportation customers.
The facility has a contract with TOTE to provide approximately 900,000 gallons of LNG per week. The facility has about 875,000 gallons of currently uncontracted production capacity that will eventually be sold to other transportation customers.
Natural Gas Pipelines
Pipelines are manufactured using high strength materials that meet strict industry standards related to diameter and wall thickness. Higher pressure lines are constructed from corrosion protected steel, while intermediate pressure lines are normally constructed using high grade polyethylene.
Our engineers and construction crews adhere to strict federal and state safety requirements governing pipeline design, materials and construction.
When it comes to designing, constructing, operating and maintaining our natural gas system, safety is our top priority. Every segment of our system is thoroughly inspected for potential leaks every three years. In certain densely-populated areas – such as downtown Tacoma – those inspections happen every year. We monitor the system every day of the year, 24 hours a day.
PSE technicians and other field employees conduct frequent patrols, surveys and inspections of our gas mains and service lines – all the way up to your gas meter – with sensitive instruments. These inspections meet or exceed all regulatory requirements.
Yes. The amount of pressure depends on the system needs to serve our customers. Higher pressure lines (greater than 60 to 550 pounds per square inch or psi) deliver natural gas to the region. Intermediate pressure lines (up to 60 psi) serve the mains in the streets and the service lines to our customers.
Our pipelines are designed so they can withstand five times the pressure at which they are operated. Before putting a new pipeline in service, the pipe is inspected for proper installation, pressure tested to verify the strength of the pipe, and checked for leaks while establishing the pipe’s safe operating pressure.
No, we purchase 100 percent of the natural gas supplies needed to serve our customers. All the gas for this facility will be brought from British Columbia, Canada.
No. The pipeline for our project will carry natural gas, either to our customers in Pierce County or to supply natural gas to the LNG facility. It is the same type of pipeline we regularly install to serve our customers.
The contractor building the LNG facility will build a cryogenic pipeline between the facility and the TOTE terminal to move LNG to fuel the ships.
The facility is equipped with regasification equipment to warm the LNG back to natural gas and inject it back into the pipeline for delivery where needed.