For provision of Firstgas impressed current cathodic protection and system interruption
- Access to any Firstgas Cathodic Protection (CP) rectifiers is restricted to Firstgas authorised personnel only.
- Installing interruption or modification of operation of any nominated Firstgas transformer rectifier(s) shall be performed by Firstgas CP Technicians/Technologists only.
- Isolation, adjustment, or re-energisation of any Firstgas transformer rectifier shall be carried out by Firstgas authorised personnel only.
- Acting on recommendations for changes to rectifier settings will be at the discretion of the Firstgas CP Technicians/Technologists.
- Any CP faults or shorts likely to impact the Firstgas CP system must be reported to Firstgas within 48 hours of identification.
- Any work that may adversely affect the Impressed Current Cathodic Protection (ICCP) system requires prior formal approval1 from Firstgas.
Works include, but are not limited to:
i. replacement, removal or installation of any flange insulation kits (FIKs) connected to the Firstgas ICCP system,
ii. welding (of any kind) on pipeline(s) that are cathodically protected by Firstgas’ ICCP system,
iii. installation of polarisation cells replacement (PCR) onto the system,
iv. connection of any earthing system(s) to the cathodic protected side of the pipe,
v. fitting of surge protection devices,
vi. reconfiguration of station piping, or
vii. any other changes that could alter CP current requirements. - Making or breaking of CP cross-bonds requires formal approval1, whether the change is intended to be temporary or permanent.
- Bonding additional pipework/pipelines into the Firstgas ICCP systems is not permitted without formal approval1.
- To maintain pipeline polarisation, interruption of the ICCP system will be for a maximum of eight [8] hours per day for four [4] days (1 cycle) every two [2] weeks. And early completion of work must be promptly notified to Firstgas CP Technicians/Technologists.
- A minimum of 10 business days’ notice is required for surveys involving rectifier interruptions, including details of timing, duration, and interruption cycles. Where this notice cannot be met (e.g., DCVG surveys, incident response), scheduling will be at Firstgas’ discretion.
- Firstgas reserves the right to disconnect other parties from the Firstgas ICCPs if it is found they compromise the system integrity, including failure to comply with these conditions.
For formal approval requests, please email: CP@firstgas.co.nz.