July 28, 2023
Dave W. Shellhouse
Vice President of Operations
Florida Gas Transmission Company, LLC
2405 Lucien Way, Suite 200
Maitland, Florida 32751
Re: Docket No. PHMSA-2023-0022
Special Permit from July 28, 2023 to July 28, 2033
Dear Mr. Shellhouse:
On March 24, 2023, pursuant to 49 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) § 190.341, Florida Gas Transmission Company, LLC (FGT)1 applied to the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) for a special permit. FGT requested a special permit to waive compliance with 49 CFR §§ 192.611(a)(3)(iii) for Class 1 and 2 to Class 3 location changes. The class location changes consist of one (1) pipeline segment of approximately 0.133 miles of 18-inch diameter and three (3) pipeline segments of approximately 0.461 miles of 30-inch diameter gas transmission pipeline (Pipeline) located in Hillsborough County, Florida.
On April 19, 2023, PHMSA published a Federal Register notice (88 FR 24266) 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-2023-0022 in the Federal Docket Management System located at www.regulations.gov.2
PHMSA grants this special permit (enclosed) based on the information provided by FGT and the findings set forth in the SPAF, FEA, and FONSI. This special permit provides relief from the Federal pipeline safety regulations for the Pipeline and requires FGT to comply with certain conditions and limitations designed to maintain pipeline safety as defined in the special permit. If FGT elects not to implement the special permit conditions, FGT must notify PHMSA and comply with 49 CFR § 192.611(a)(3)(iii) within 18 months of the special permit grant date.
In granting FGT’s request, PHMSA notes the Pipeline is already subject to an existing PHMSA special permit at Docket No. PHMSA-2008-0077. PHMSA emphasizes that the required conditions specified for the four (4) specific pipeline segments addressed here (PHMSA-2023-0022) will control, superseding any inconsistent requirements applicable to these four (4) pipeline segments in the previous special permit (PHMSA-2008-0077).
My staff would be pleased to discuss this special permit or any other regulatory matter with you. Mary McDaniel, Acting Director of PHMSA Engineering and Research Division, may be contacted at (713) 272-2847, on technical matters; and Bryan Lethcoe, Director, Office of Pipeline Safety, Southwest Region, may be contacted at (713) 773-7215, for operational matters specific to this special permit.
Sincerely,
Alan K. Mayberry
Associate Administrator for Pipeline Safety
Enclosure: Special Permit – PHMSA-2023-0022
1. Florida Gas Transmission Company, LLC is owned by Energy Transfer and Kinder Morgan, Inc.
2. https://www.regulations.gov/docket?D=PHMSA-2023-0022.