Comments from George Fernandez

Richard,
I have indirectly been involved with the new stance of what criteria we should follow to ensure our pipeline is cathodically protected and safe. I have been in the business for about 26 years and I don’t know everything about corrosion that I should but I do know something about pipelines in general and especially the pipeline I’m in charge of. Our group takes care of about 1900 miles of crude oil pipeline with some old and some new systems within that asset. Part of this asset is over 55 years old and we have never had a “corrosion leak” on any of our systems – knock on wood”. I am not going into the chemical and or engineering design of what corrosion is all about because we can make this letter longer than it should be. I will agree things have changed throughout the years and we have learned through experience what works and what doesn’t work. I agree with Tom Laundrie’s comment that regulations have increased, company standards have improved, companies have developed Integrity Management Plans which are auditable by PHMSA, running smart tools, doing close interval surveys, DCVG, digs, other testing, I can go on and on. Each company/technician know their systems. I work with many peers in the industry and we learn from each other, work together to improve our systems, and strive to make sure we are doing what is right for our respective system. As a regulated system, we strive to follow all regulatory requirements and we have done a pretty good job.
I would just like to say that the committee is trying to set a criteria that will have to be followed by the industry and I just don’t think it is fair across the board. We take IR drop into consideration because it’s another level of satisfaction that we feel is necessary. Is it necessary for all, probably not due to the fact that each environment is different. Other methods of testing and requirements can be done to ensure our safety and the safety of others. The present and existing criteria is doing its job. In my case the criteria is working well.
I commend the TEG 360 committee with their efforts but I think they need to look at what their peers are saying. The committee has spent enormous amount of time on this effort and it is time to look each other in the face and say if this is the right thing to do with what has gone on in the past few years.
Again, I have learned from very notable corrosion experts and I have followed their leads. With that said, we have refined the world of corrosion and NACE has been a big part of our success. Let’s keep doing what is right and let the people in the industry do what is working for them.

Thank You

George Fernandez