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Transmission Committee
TGS_3 Case Study
Benchmark activity
Lima – March 2017

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• 10 questions
• 3 main topics
– Cathodic protection effectiveness (5 questions)
– Remote monitoring (4 questions)
– Cathodic protection services (1 question)
Architecture

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1. How is your Company’s Cathodic protection system structured?
– 1.1 Protection criteria
– 1.2 Infrastructure
– 1.3 Maintenance structure
2. Which measurement techniques and frequencies do you use to
control the efficiency of the instruments and the effectiveness of
cathodic protection?
– 2.1 Efficiency of the instruments
– 2.2 Effectiveness of cathodic protection
3. According to EN12954 or ISO15589-1, commissioning of cathodic
protection system shall be carried out in three steps: i) preliminary
test, ii) start-up and iii) verification of the effectiveness of cathodic
protection. How do you approach the third step in order to
characterize the electrical interference?
Cathodic protection effectiveness

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4. Coupon or probe can be used to measure the cathodic
protection potential. Which kind of coupon or probe do you
use? Their dimensions have to be representative of a defect
which could be present on the pipeline coating. How do you
select them?
5. According to EN12954 or ISO15589-1, specialized surveys
shall be planned based on inspection results and pipeline
integrity, especially when excessive coating damage is
suspected and/or localized areas of inefficient protection are
observed. Which kind of specialized surveys do you use and
when do you use them?
Cathodic protection effectiveness

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6. Do you use remote monitoring system? In which test posts?
7. Please describe the architecture of your Company’s remote
monitoring system
8. Which electric parameters are remote monitored and which
are the statistical information do you collect?
9. Does your remote monitoring system include the remote
control of the CP rectifier set up?
Remote monitoring

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10. Maintenance could be carried out by corporate personnel or
third parties personnel. Which organizational model do you
have?
Cathodic protection services

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• SRG – Italy
• GRT GAZ – France
• TIGF – France
• NET4GAS – Czech Republic
• PLINOVODI – Slovenia
• EUSTREAM – Slovakia
• EUROPOLGAZ – Poland
• TAG – Austria
20 companies involved
• GASSCO – Norway
• KOGAS – Korea
• TOWNGAS – China
• TOKYO GAS – Japan
• SERGAZ – Tunisia
• STEG – Tunisia
• COGA – Peru
• TBG – Brazil

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• Step #1
– Reply the 11 questions by consulting the regulations (where
applicable)
• Alignment with international standards
• Step #2
– Analyze the replies of the 16 companies
• Nomination of a metric (where applicable)
• Parametrization
• Graphical comparison
• Step #3
– Comparing Step #1 and Step #2
Activity of analysis

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• ISO 15589-1 - Petroleum, petrochemical and natural gas
industries - Cathodic protection of pipeline systems - Part 1:
On-land pipelines
• EN 12954 - Cathodic protection of buried or immersed metallic
structures - General principles and application for pipelines
• EN 50162 - Protection against corrosion by stray current from
direct current systems
• ISO 18086 - Corrosion of metals and alloys - Determination of
AC corrosion - Protection criteria
• EN 15280 - Evaluation of a.c. corrosion likelihood of buried
pipelines applicable to cathodically protected pipelines
• EN 13509 - Cathodic protection measurement techniques
Reference standards

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• In order to perform a global (i.e. worldwide) benchmark the
only common standards to refer are the ISO
• Nevertheless also EN standards (which derive from ISO) are
taken into consideration in order to, in some way, highlight
possible differences
• The results at the moment confirm an high conformity
between the two standards with no evidence of differences
Reference standards

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1.2 – Infrastructures (benchmark)
mean value

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1.2 – Infrastructures (benchmark)

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1.2 – Infrastructures (benchmark)
mean value

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COMPANY
Measured parameters
Statistical analysis
Eon Eoff I/V rect AC Drainage
A X X X no info
B X X X X no info
C no info
D X X X X no info
E X X no info
F X X X min, max, mean, std dev
G X X no info
H X X X elaboration at device level
L X X performed but not specified
M X X X X no info
N no info
O X X min, max, mean
P X X X elaboration at device level
Q X X no info
R X no info
S X X X X X min, max, mean, std dev
8 – Benchmark

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COMPANY
Parameters remote controlled
Iout Eon on ref. elct. Ion Coupon Switch ON-OFF
A X
D X
F X X
L X X
M X
O X X
P X
Q X
S X X
• 9 out of 16 companies declare their remote monitoring system
include the remote control of the CP rectifier set up
9 – Benchmark

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COMPANY Commiss. Special survey Maint. Additional info
A T Company’s CP specialists prepare scope of work.
B No clear answer
C T Two on-site personnel
D T T T
E C C C
F T T C
G C C T
H T C
L C
M C T C
N C C C
O T T T
P No clear answer
Q T C
Under supervision of CP persons who are
responsible or management of CP.
R C C C
S C
Standard measurements controls are provided by
subcontractors very year
10 – Benchmark C : Corporate personnel T : Third parties

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• No homogeneous organization among the companies
– some companies outsources commissioning and special survey
– some companies outsources only maintenance or only special surveys
– some companies declared all activities are performed by corporate
personnel
– some companies outsources all activities.
Question #10 (Cathodic protection services)