CSA EXP276.2:19

Preface

This is the first edition of CSA EXP276.2, Design requirements for near-shoreline floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) facilities. This Document is not a consensus product; that is, it is not a Standard and it has not been formally reviewed or approved by a CSA Technical Committee. This Express Document may be used as a basis for further standardisation.

Several FLNG facilities are proposed to be located in British Columbia. These facilities vary in concept from land-based production with floating storage and offloading to fully integrated floating production, storage and offloading. A single comprehensive Canadian standard does not currently exist to provide guidance on the design of these types of facilities specific to the needs of the west coast of North America. The purpose of this Document is to fulfill an immediate need for supplemental design guidance pertaining to FLNG facilities.

CSA Z276-18, Liquefied natural gas (LNG) – Production, storage, and handling, establishes essential requirements and minimum standards for the design, installation, and safe operation of land-based LNG facilities for the liquefaction of natural gas. The scope of CSA Z276 does not apply to floating LNG facilities. There is a gap with respect to the requirements and standards for the structural design of FLNG facilities, associated LNG storage systems, and the modularization and marinization of process equipment, transfer, and mooring systems. This Express Document recognizes the need for a comprehensive risk-based approach to facility design and layout and therefore is intended to be used as a supplement to, or in place of, the requirements contained in CSA Z276.

Introduction

This Express Document (herein referred to as this Document) sets safety objectives and provides guidance for the establishment of performance criteria, supplemental to or in place of CSA Z276, for the design of FLNG facilities to protect public and worker safety and the environment.

This Document is not a design handbook, and as such is intended as guidance to qualified, competent, and suitably experienced engineering professionals.

Scope

1.1 General

This Document applies to the engineering analysis and design of FLNG facilities for the purpose of LNG export that are permanently moored to shore.

This Document provides functional guidelines and recommended practices for the design of these facilities including the liquefaction, storage, transfer, and handling of LNG.

This Document has been designed to complement provincial and/or federal regulatory frameworks and does not mandate regulatory requirements. This Document provides advisory guidance that can be followed to demonstrate compliance with local and national codes and regulations and industry best practices. Alternative design codes and standards that are not specified in this Document may be used, provided that pertinent local and national regulations are satisfied and that it can be demonstrated that the design meets industry best practices.

1.2 Applicability

This Document is applicable to the engineering analysis, design, and operation of FLNG facilities and includes

a) floating facilities used for any combination of conditioning natural gas, liquefying natural gas, storing LNG, or offloading LNG;

b) facilities that are permanently tethered to a jetty, pier, wharf, or shore;

c) purpose-built FLNG facilities and repurposed liquefied natural gas carriers (LNGCs);

d) ship-to-shore utility interconnectivity (e.g., gas supply and electrical connection); and

e) FLNG facility permanent mooring systems.

1.3 Excluded from scope

This Document does not apply to

a) onshore facilities (covered by CSA Z276);

b) offshore facilities;

c) near-shore facilities;

d) LNGCs;

e) floating facilities used for the purpose of LNG regasification;

f) associated marine structures (piers, wharves, or jetties); and

g) gravity-based structures.

1.4 Terminology

In this Document, shall is used to express a requirement, i.e., a provision that the user is obliged to satisfy in order to comply with the Document; should is used to express a recommendation or that which is advised but not required; and may is used to express an option or that which is permissible within the limits of the Document.

Notes accompanying clauses do not include requirements or alternative requirements; the purpose of a note accompanying a clause is to separate from the text explanatory or informative material.

Notes to tables and figures are considered part of the table or figure and may be written as requirements.

Annexes are designated normative (mandatory) or informative (non-mandatory) to define their application.