Rail Crossing Loading Assessment and Quantitative Risk Assessment for a Gas Networks Ireland Pipeline

Project Background

Gas Networks Ireland (GNI) operates and maintains over 14,725 km of gas transmission and distribution pipelines, supplying reliable and efficient energy to more than 720,000 homes and businesses across Ireland every day.

During the planning phase of the double tracking of an existing railway line in Ireland, it was identified that the proposed rail route would intersect with an existing high-pressure GNI pipeline. Penspen was engaged to evaluate the potential impact of additional rail loading on the pipeline’s structural integrity and determine whether any mitigation measures would be required prior to railway construction.

Services

Our Asset Integrity team in the UK delivered a combined pipeline loading assessment and quantitative risk assessment (QRA) to determine if the proposed railway loading would impact pipeline integrity.

Our scope of work covered:

• A detailed loading assessment based on IGEM/TD/1, IS.328, and API 1102 to analyse additional stress impacts from the new railway infrastructure.
• Application of API 1102 to assess vertical and lateral loads across the rail crossing, ensuring alignment with industry best practice.
• A desk-based evaluation of pipeline depth of cover, to determine if existing burial depth can safely accommodate the new track loadings.

Result

Penspen’s Asset Integrity team confirmed that the pipeline could safely withstand the additional rail loading without the need for mitigation. This outcome enabled the safe expansion of essential public transport infrastructure in Ireland to proceed without delays or costly pipeline excavation or remediation, while ensuring the continued integrity and safety of GNI’s critical energy infrastructure and surrounding local communities.