March 17, 2023
Mr. Kenneth W. Grubb
Chief Operating Officer
Kinder Morgan Natural Gas Division
1001 Louisiana Street, Suite 1000
Houston, Texas 77002
Re: Docket No. PHMSA-2016-0006
Special Permit Renewal from March 17, 2023, to March 17, 2028
Dear Mr. Grubb:
On March 4, 2021, pursuant to 49 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) § 190.341, Southern Natural Gas Company, LLC (SNG)1 applied to the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) for a special permit. SNG requested a renewal of a previously granted special permit to waive compliance with 49 CFR §§ 192.611(a) and (d), 192.619(a), and 192.5 for Class 1 to Class 3 location changes on 16 pipeline segments for approximately 3.180 miles of 16-inch diameter, 18-inch diameter, 20-inch diameter, 24-inch diameter, 26-inch diameter, and 30-inch diameter gas transmission pipelines (Pipelines) located in Autauga and Lee Counties, Alabama; Harris, Jones, and Spalding Counties, Georgia; and East Baton Rouge and Livingston Parishes, Louisiana. A gas transmission pipeline operator is required by 49 CFR § 192.611 to confirm or revise the maximum allowable operating pressure of a pipeline segment where the class location has changed as defined in 49 CFR § 192.5.
On May 27, 2022, PHMSA published a Federal Register notice (87 FR 32232) announcing the Special Permit Request. The Special Permit Request letter, Final Environmental Assessment (FEA) and Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI), Special Permit Analysis and Findings (SPAF), and all other pertinent documents for this special permit are available in Docket No. PHMSA-2016-0006 in the Federal Docket Management System located at www.regulations.gov.2
Subject to the stated terms and conditions, PHMSA grants this special permit (enclosed) based on the information provided by SNG and the findings set forth in the SPAF, FEA, and FONSI. This special permit provides relief from certain provisions of the Federal pipeline safety regulations for the Pipelines and requires SNG to comply with conditions and limitations designed to maintain pipeline safety as defined in the special permit. Note that in accordance with 49 CFR § 190.341(j), PHMSA reserves the right to revoke, suspend, or modify this special permit if circumstances occur in which its continuance would be inconsistent with pipeline safety. If SNG elects not to implement the special permit conditions, SNG must notify PHMSA within 60 days and comply with 49 CFR § 192.611 within 18 months of the date of this letter.
My staff would be pleased to discuss this special permit or any other regulatory matter with you. Sentho White, Director of PHMSA Engineering and Research Division, may be contacted at (202) 366-2415, on technical matters; and James Urisko, Director, Office of Pipeline Safety, Southern Region, may be contacted at (404) 832-1150, for operational matters specific to this special permit.
Sincerely,
Alan K. Mayberry
Associate Administrator for Pipeline Safety
Enclosure: Special Permit – PHMSA-2016-0006
1. Southern Natural Gas Company, LLC is owned by Kinder Morgan, Inc.
2. https://www.regulations.gov/docket?D=PHMSA-2016-0006.