A risk-based maintenance model for cross-country pipelines

Cross-country pipelines are the most energy-efficient, safe, environmentally friendly, and economic way to ship hydrocarbons over long distances, either within the geographical boundary of a country or beyond it. While pipelines are one of the safest modes of transporting bulk energy, and have failure rates much lower than railroads or highway transportation, failures do occur, and sometimes with catastrophic consequences. While pipeline failures rarely cause fatalities, disruptions in operation lead to large business losses. Failures can be very expensive and cause considerable damage to the environment. A model for predicting the risk factor for pipeline failures is presented. This model allows management to formulate a cost-effective, customized, flexible, and logical maintenance policy. This study reveals the effect of certain risk factors on the failure of pipelines/pipeline sections and derives risk management technique for a cost- effective maintenance policy.