SON gives ultimatum on certification of liquified natural gas storage
As part of measure to enhance security of lives, the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) has issued a two-week ultimatum to all owners of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) storage tanks nationwide to commence the process of SON certification or have their facilities shut down.
A statement from the office of the Director General, Mr. Osita Aboloma, in Abuja disclosed that SON has observed a sharp rise in the installation of LPG storage tanks in Petrol filling stations across the country many of which have been unable to provide evidence of SON certification of the vessels.
The Director General then directed all SON State offices to intensify the surveillance of all installed LPG storage tanks in their areas of coverage to ascertain those that have undergone SON certification before installation as required by the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) regulation.
Mr. Aboloma disclosed that all imported and locally fabricated LPG storage tanks are required to undergo SON certification to assure conformity to the requirements of Nigeria Industrial Standard (NIS) 419:2000, Specification and Testing of Unfired Pressure Vessels for the storage of liquified petroleum gas (LPG). These, he said, include safety and performance requirements.
According to him, locally manufactured vessels are required to undergo certification under the SON Mandatory Conformity Assessment Programme (MANCAP), while imported vessels are required to undergo the off-shore Conformity Assessment Programme (SONCAP) certification.
The SON Director General appealed to the public to be vigilant and report any installation of LPG storage tanks in their vicinity to the nearest SON office for verification of compliance to standards requirement in the interest of public safety.
He warned that Nigerians should not suffer from avoidable gas explosion occasioned by the use of sub-standard LPG storage tanks. “The time has come to put our acts together and end the nightmare. We are commited to the full implementation of the policy against the use of substandard LPG storage tanks” he said.
