PETROLEUM AND NATURAL GAS REGULATORY BOARD

NOTIFICATION

New Delhi, the 17th April, 2015

F. No. PNGRB/M(I)/T4S/Confo/1/2009.---In exercise of the powers conferred by

section 61 of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board Act, 2006 (19 of 2006), the
Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board hereby makes the following regulations, namely:

1. Short title and commencement

(1) These regulations may be called the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board
(Third Party Conformity Assessment) Regulations, 2015.

(2) They shall come into force on the date of their publication in the Official Gazette.

2. Definitions

(1) In these regulations, unless the context otherwise requires, -

(a) “Accreditation Body” means a body determined by the Board to assess the
competence of Third Party Agencies (TPAs) for carrying out third party
inspection or audit for conformity to the relevant regulation and recommend to the
Board for their empanelment;

(b) "Act" means the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board Act, 2006 (19 of
2006);

(c) “Approved Agency’’ means a Third Party Agency duly approved by the Board on
its own or based on recommendation by an Accreditation Body determined by the
Board;

(d) “Assessment” means a planned and documented activity which may include
examination and verification of the application, data, information or documents
submitted by a Third Party Agency and office or site assessment performed to
determine by investigation, examination or evaluation of objective evidence, the
adequacy of compliance with established criteria regarding requirements,
procedures, instructions and other applicable documents and the effectiveness of
implementation of such Third Party Agency;

(e) “Inspector” means Inspector or auditor qualified as per specified competence

criteria;

(f) “Legal entity” means an entity which is legally registered as per laws of the
country and which can be legally held responsible for its activities;

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 (g) “Supervisor” means a technically competent person responsible for supervising
qualified inspectors or auditors and for reviewing their work;

(h) “Third Party Agency” means Type A inspection body as per ISO/IEC 17020.

(2) Words and expressions used and not defined in these regulations, but defined in the
Act or in the rules or regulations made thereunder, shall have the meanings
respectively assigned to them in the Act or in the rules or regulations, as the case may
be.

3. Applicability

These regulations shall apply to –

(a) hydrocarbons processing installations such as refinery, gas processing, LNG Re-
gasification installations etc.;
(b) pipeline such as natural gas, propane, butane etc. and the hydrocarbon products which
remain in gaseous state at Normal Temperature and Pressure (NTP);
(c) liquid petroleum product including LPG pipeline;
(d) commercial as well as intermediate and balancing petroleum storage facilities,
natural gas storage facilities and terminals including storage facilities at LNG Re-
gasification terminals;
(e) hydrocarbon gas bottling installations having receiving, storage and handling
facilities including storage for LPG, propane and butane;
(f) city or local natural gas distribution facilities;
(g) dispensing stations and retail outlets;
(h) transportation of petroleum products by road;
(i) any other installation as may be notified by the Board from time to time.

4. Scope

Requirement of these regulations shall apply for third party conformity of various
regulations as notified and amended by the Board from time to time including but not
limited to the following–

(a) the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (Technical Standards and
Specifications including Safety Standards for City or Local Natural Gas
Distribution Networks) Regulations, 2008;
(b) the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (Technical Standards and
Specifications including Safety Standards for Natural Gas Pipelines)
Regulations, 2009;
(c) the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (Codes of Practices for
Emergency Response and Disaster Management Plan (ERDMP)) Regulations,
2010;

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 (d) the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (Integrity Management System
for Natural gas pipelines) Regulations, 2012;
(e) the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (Integrity Management System
for City or Local Natural Gas Distribution Networks) Regulations, 2013;
1
[(f) the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (Technical Standards and
Specifications including Safety Standards for Petroleum and Petroleum Products
Pipelines) Regulations, 2016;
(g) the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (Technical Standards and
Specifications including Safety Standards for Liquefied Natural Gas Facilities)
Regulations, 2017;
(h) the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (Technical Standards and
Specifications including Safety Standards for dispensing of Automotive Fuels)
Regulations, 2018;
(i) the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (Technical Standards and
Specifications including Safety Standards for LPG Storage, Handling and Bottling
Facilities) Regulations, 2019;
(j) the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (Technical Standards and
Specifications including Safety Standards for Petroleum Installations) Regulations, 2020]

5. Intent.

The intent of these regulations is to specify mechanism for assessment of conformity to

various regulations by the entities through Approved Agencies or by the Board on its own
including eligibility criteria and procedure for assessment of Third Party Agency for
empanelment as Approved Agency.

6. Demonstration of compliance

6.(1) All entities shall demonstrate compliance to the relevant regulations notified by the
Board through assessment of conformity of various activities at different stages through
appropriate certification, monitoring, control and mitigation mechanism including
Statutory Audits, Third Party Inspections etc by Approved Agencies at specified
periodicity and through appropriate submissions to the Board. The Board may provide
appropriate guidelines or check lists for assessing conformity of notified regulations
related to various activities at different stages including but not limited to design of
system or infrastructure, procurement of material or equipment, construction and
commissioning, operation, emergency preparedness and response etc.

6.(2) 2[(a) The entities shall undertake an internal audit for ensuring compliance to
relevant regulations notified by the Board at least once a year.]

(b) The entities shall arrange for an external third party inspection or audit from an
Approved Agency for compliance of relevant regulations notified by the Board in

1
Ins. by cl. (i) of reg. (2), the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (Third Party Conformity Assessment)
Amendment Regulations, 2021 (w.e.f. 16.12.2021)
2
Subs. by sub-cl. (a) of cl. (i) of reg.2, ibid. (w.e.f. 16.12.2021)

3
 accordance to frequency as per matrix provided at Appendix-1. The inspection or audit
shall include verification of actions taken for addressing the non-conformities raised in
the previous inspection or audit, if any. A copy of the report of inspection or audit carried
out by approved agency shall be submitted by the entity after approval by its competent
authority to the Board.

7. The entities shall designate authorized person for the purpose of compliance to these
regulations and inform the Board.

8. In case any inspection or audit or any other means of conformity assessment reveals any
non compliance of relevant regulations, the entity shall prepare a time based mitigation
plan which is reviewed and agreed to by the Approved Agency and submit the same to
the Board. The entity shall provide quarterly progress report on compliance of the audit
observations.

9. The Board, at its discretion, may undertake an additional inspection or audit of any entity
either directly or through an approved agency.

10. Eligibility criteria for Third Party Agencies seeking approval as Approved Agency and
Procedure for Empanelment of Third Party Agencies are as specified in Schedule-1 and
Schedule-2.

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 Schedule-1
(see regulation 10)

Eligibility Criteria for Third Party Agencies seeking approval as Approved Agency:

1-1 THE THIRD PARTY AGENCY (TPA)

1-1.1 Qualifications

A Third Party Agency (TPA) shall meet the requirements of these Regulations, ISO/IEC 17020
including amendments and up gradation thereto and any other requirements or guidelines
specified by the Board or Accreditation Body.

1-1.1.1 A TPA shall be a legal entity in India or a reputed International Inspecting body having
an office in India.

1-1.1.2 The TPA shall ensure the competence of its inspectors/ supervisors for the scopes for
which empanelment is sought. The TPA shall obtain appropriate credentials of inspectors/
supervisors. The Board may issue guidelines in this regard from time to time.

1-1.1.3 The TPA shall also have adequate financial capability to carry out inspection/ audit under
regulations. The net worth of TPA shall be positive and there shall not be losses in any two
consecutive financial years during last 3 years.

1-1.1.4 The TPA shall have an effective organization, monitoring and control mechanism that
enables it to maintain the capability to perform its technical and safety inspection functions
satisfactorily.

1-1.1.5 The TPA shall have documentation which describes its functions and the technical scope
of activity for which it is competent.

1-1.1.6 The TPA shall have adequate experience of inspection/ audit but no less than 3 years in
the field of Oil and Gas sector for which the TPA is seeking approval as an Approved Agency.
However, Board may, at its discretion, consider a TPA as an entity which does not possess the
requisite minimum experience in the field of Oil and Gas sector provided it has adequate
qualified personnel having experience in Oil and Gas sector.

1-1.1.7 The TPA shall carry out inspection/audit through qualified Supervisors and
Inspectors/auditors who meet the qualifications/ requirements under ISO/IEC 17020 and as
defined herein.

1-1.2 Duties

A TPA shall perform the duties specified below:

1-1.2.1 Provide qualified Inspectors/auditors to audit the activities in accordance with the
relevant Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board Regulations.
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1-1.2.2 Employ Supervisors to check, monitor and review the performance of the
Inspectors/auditors.

1-1.2.3 Assure proper execution of responsibilities. In particular, the TPA shall -

(a) establish and implement an internal programme which shall provide assurance that those of
its employees holding the position of Supervisor and Inspector/auditor perform their work in
accordance with the requirements of these Regulations. This programme shall be documented by
written policies, procedures, or instructions and shall be covering inspections/audits required
under relevant Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board Regulations. The programme shall
provide for orientation and training of personnel performing such activities, as necessary, to
ensure that suitable proficiency level is achieved and maintained;

(b) provide instructions in writing to Inspectors/auditors and their Supervisors, specifying their
respective duties and responsibilities;

(c) provide instructions in writing to Inspectors/auditors to require them to contact their

Supervisor whenever the Inspector/auditor is unable to judge conformity with relevant Petroleum
and Natural Gas Regulatory Board Regulations and other relevant Statutory Rules relating to
design, construction, commissioning, manufacturing procedure, operation, safety or quality
control provision or its implementation. Instructions should be included as a reminder to the
Inspector/auditor that he has the authority and the duty to assess and include in its report all
issues involving non conformance with relevant Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board
Regulations.

1-1.2.4 Ensure availability of Inspectors/auditors, Supervisors and Technical Manager with

relevant competence for performing work under the provisions of relevant Petroleum and Natural
Gas Regulatory Board Regulations, to ensure that the Technical Manager, Inspectors/auditors
and Supervisors meet the required competence, experience and training requirements of 1-2.1,1-
3.1 and 1-4.1 as appropriate. Documentation of the qualifications and experience shall be
retained by the employer and shall be made available for review by the accreditation body or
legal or statutory authorities upon request.

1-1.3 TPA System

1-1.3.1 A documented quality management system shall be established, implemented, and

maintained by the TPA in accordance with the requirements of the ISO/IEC 17020 Standard
including amendments and up gradation thereto and any other requirements/ guidelines specified
by the Board or Accreditation Body. The TPA shall identify the activities to which the laid down
system applies and shall provide for the planning, control and accomplishment of activities
affecting the quality of the organization’s implementation of duties and activities as described in
the applicable parts of these Regulations.

1-1.3.2 The TPA System shall, at a minimum, include the following parts:

(a) Organization. The TPA shall document the organizational structure, functional
responsibilities, levels of authority and lines of responsibilities for activities required for
compliance with the requirements of the Standard ISO/IEC 17020 or any other relevant

6
standards including amendments and upgradation thereto, for activities/processes required for
conformity of relevant regulations and any other requirements/ guidelines specified by the Board
or Accreditation Body.

(b) Quality Management System Description. The TPA shall describe the scope of the activities
for which the Quality Management System applies. The TPA shall document the policies and
describe the process for the implementation of the requirements of the applicable Standards and
PNGRB Regulations/Guidelines/Check Lists etc.

(c) Document Control. The TPA shall describe the process for the review and revision of its
documented System. Changes to the documented System shall be controlled and the process for
review and approval of changes shall be specified. All changes to the System require review and
acceptance by the Board or Accreditation Body before implementation. Further, the System shall
be controlled to ensure appropriate distribution to and use at the location(s) where the prescribed
activity is performed.

(d) Training. The System shall describe the process for the indoctrination and training of
personnel.

(e) Audits. The System shall describe the process for the audits as required under 1-3.2.5 and 1-
1.8(d).

(f) Records. The System shall describe the process for records management. The description
shall include the requirements and the responsibilities for record identification, generation,
distribution, and retention including mechanism for maintaining confidentiality.

1-1.4 Administrative Requirements

The TPA must -

(a) identify its Inspectors/auditors as employees or empanelled experts of the organization. The
organization must demonstrate control over the Inspector’s/auditor’s activities;

(b) have on its regular rolls at least 5 Inspectors/auditors and one Supervisor with relevant
experience of inspection/ audit for the scope applied for out of the areas as mentioned under
regulation 3 above. The Supervisor /Inspector ratio shall be at least 1:5;

(c) identify any entity within its ownership structure that provides a service or product that may
create a conflict of interest with its TPA work and put in place a documented and demonstrable
mechanism to ensure that there is no conflict of interest in TPA work;

1-1.5 Structure of TPAs

The TPA must -

(a) be a legal entity in India ;

(b) provide the formal name of the TPA and under what legal authority it was formed ;

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(c) identify the owner or owners of the organization and, additionally, any other owners within
the chain of ownership up to, and including, the ultimate parent or owner.

1-1.6 Independence, Impartiality Integrity and Confidentiality

1-1.6.1 The TPAs shall meet requirements prescribed in the applicable standards like ISO 17020.

1.1.6.2 The TPAs shall be Type A inspection bodies as per ISO/IEC 17020.

1.1.6.3 The TPAs shall not have any commercial relationship with the entities other than third
party conformity assessment.

1.1.6.4 The TPA shall ensure confidentiality of information obtained in the course of its
inspection/audit/conformity assessment activities. Proprietary rights shall be protected.

1.1.6.5 The TPA shall ensure that all of its manpower including outsourced manpower
responsible for carrying out inspection/ audit related tasks and/or having access to related
data/information/document are not only aware of the requirements under this head but shall also
ensure compliance of the same through an appropriate mechanism.

1-1.7 Organization and Management

The TPA shall -

(a) have the capability to perform its technical functions satisfactorily;

(b) define and document the responsibilities and reporting structure;

(c) have a technical manager, howsoever named, who has the overall responsibility for
overseeing inspection/audit/conformity assessment activities in accordance with these
regulations;

(d) perform annual review of performance of Supervisors and Inspectors/ auditors and update
their records.

1-2 THE TECHNICAL MANAGER

1-2.1 Qualifications

1-2.1.1 The TPA shall have available one or more persons as technical managers who have
overall responsibility to ensure that the conformance assessment activities are carried out in
accordance to these Regulations, ISO/ IEC 17020 Standard and as per regulations. The Technical
Manager shall be a permanent employee of the TPA.

1-2.1.2 The Technical Managers shall be technically competent, have thorough knowledge on
regulations and have relevant experience in the Oil and Gas sector. Where the TPA has more
than one technical manager, the specific responsibilities of each technical manager shall be
defined and documented.

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1-3 THE SUPERVISOR

1-3.1 Qualifications

1-3.1.1 The Supervisor shall be selected and designated as such by the TPA. In this regard,
guidance may be taken from standards such as Part 5 of ASME QAI-1a (Qualifications for
Authorized Inspection), ASME B31Q (Pipeline Personnel Qualification – ASME Code for
pressure piping). A Supervisor shall also be qualified as an Inspector and shall have the
additional qualifications specified below.

1-3.1.2 The Supervisor, subsequent to being qualified as an Inspector, shall have been engaged
for at least 1 year in activities such as inspection or examination in the areas specified under
Regulation 3 above for which he is responsible for supervision.

1-3.1.3 The Supervisor shall have knowledge of the requirements of the applicable PNGRB
Regulations and any standards/codes mentioned therein.

1-3.2 Duties

The Supervisor shall perform the duties specified below:

1-3.2.1 The Supervisor shall maintain a record of field sites where Inspectors assigned to the
Supervisor are performing inspection activities. The Supervisor shall record the date of visits
when related to the assigned supervisory duties.

1-3.2.2 The Supervisor shall maintain a record of those Inspectors assigned and a description of
their assignments.

1-3.2.3 The Supervisor shall assist in maintaining the competency of the Inspector to an
acceptable level through periodic arrangement of panel discussions of work-related topics,
written communications of unique problems and their solution, informal question and answer
discussion sessions, and other means deemed suitable. The Supervisor shall maintain
documentation of such activities.

1-3.2.4 The Supervisor shall be responsible for the technical performance of the Inspectors.
Nonconforming activities reported to the Supervisor shall be informed to the TPA’s Technical
Managers.

1-3.2.5 The Supervisor shall audit and document the performance of each Inspector, which shall
include at least one onsite witness in each year and at additional times as the need is felt by the
Supervisor.

1-3.2.6 The audit required in 1-3.2.5 shall be documented in writing and shall contain comments
regarding the status of each item audited.

1-3.2.7 The Supervisor shall confirm that corrective action has been verified by the Inspector to
ensure compliance with the requirements of relevant ASME Code and relevant Petroleum and
Natural Gas Regulatory Board Regulations.

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1-4 THE INSPECTOR

1-4.1 Qualifications

An Inspector appointed and designated by the TPA shall be appropriately qualified for the scope/
area in which he is to carry out inspection activity. In this regard, guidance may be taken from
standards such as Part 5 of ASME QAI-1a (Qualifications for Authorized Inspection), ASME
B31Q (Pipeline Personnel Qualification – ASME Code for pressure piping) etc. Inspectors shall
comply with the requirements of these Regulations. An applicant for designation as an Inspector
shall have the characteristics defined below:

(a) Demonstrated ability to perform shop and field inspections and other inspection activities in
accordance with relevant Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board Regulations to the
satisfaction of the Organization employing him;

(b) Satisfactory degree of expertise, experience, and background knowledge for the inspection
of pressure equipment and other critical facilities according to the complexity of the assignment
and the type of plant being inspected;

(c) Knowledge of applicable standards referenced in the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory
Board Regulations particularly the relevant ASME Code, Addenda, etc.;

(d) Knowledge of Quality Control Systems, programs, shop and field procedures;

(e) Knowledge and ability to evaluate and monitor shop and field procedures and performance;

(f) Knowledge of the requirements for maintenance and retention of records;

(g) Knowledge on Safety system of Oil and Gas Industries.

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[(h) Minimum 5 years’ of working experience in operation and maintenance in the relevant
area]

3
Ins. by cl. (iii) of reg. (2), the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (Third Party Conformity Assessment)
Amendment Regulations, 2021 (w.e.f. 16.12.2021)

10
 Schedule-2

(see regulation 10)

The details submitted for empanelment of TPAs are for use within the administrative
requirements of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board for approval of TPAs.

2-1 REQUIRED ACCREDITATION TO PROVIDE QUALIFIED INSPECTION

SERVICES

TPAs shall be accredited by the Accreditation Body, as per ISO/IEC 17020 or any other
appropriate standard and/or any other mechanism as approved by the Board. The Board may also
decide to assess and empanel TPAs on its own.

2-2 SCOPE OF APPROVAL

(a) The letter of empanelment issued by the Board shall state the scope of
inspection/audit/conformity assessment for the sectors for which approval is granted. Approval
may be issued by PNGRB initially for 1 year on condition that the TPA shall obtain accreditation
under ISO/IEC 17020 or any other appropriate standard for the scope for which TPA has been
approved. Further, the TPA gets accreditation under ISO/IEC 17020 or any other appropriate
standard; the approval may be issued upto the period of accreditation. The Board may, at its
discretion, limit or extend the scope of approval and/or period of empanelment of Approved
Agency.

(b) Applicants for empanelment may apply for any or all of the areas as specified under
Regulation 3 above.

2-3 APPLICATION FOR EMPANELMENT

A TPA desiring empanelment shall apply to the Accreditation Body/ Board in specified
application forms issued by the Board and/or Accreditation Body which shall also include the
following:

i) Describing the basis for its qualification/ experience as a TPA and the scope of activities
to be approved.

ii) Financial Details such as Annual Turnover, Net worth etc. for the last 3 years.

iii) Number of years of experience in the areas /scope of activities applied for out of the
activities mentioned under Regulation 3 above along with the description of such
experience upto last 10 years.

iv) Details of inspection/audit experience to be provided in the Format 1 along with copies of
Work Orders and Completion Certificates particularly for the last 3 years related to the
scope applied for and duly stamped and certified by the authorized signatory.

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v) Details of Qualified Inspectors/auditors/supervisors/technical manager to be provided in
Format 2 along with resumes of technical manager/ supervisors/ Qualified
Inspectors/auditors who the TPA proposes to involve for carrying out the inspection/
audit under the scope applied for. For outsourced manpower proposed for inspection/
audit under the scope applied for, undertaking, letter of commitment and/ or contract
relating to commitment clearly mentioning the period of engagement need also to be
provided.

vi) The applicant shall be required to give declaration in Format 3 with respect to correctness
of information.

2-4 ASSESSMENT OF TPAs FOR EMPANELMENT

(a) The Board either directly or through an Accreditation Body shall evaluate the applications
received which may include presentation to the Board by the applicant.

(b) The applicant shall provide a controlled copy of its documentation specified by the Board or
by the Board approved Accreditation Body in compliance with ISO/IEC 17020 or any other
appropriate standard and in accordance with other requirements such as ‘All changes to the
TPA Inspection/Conformity Assessment System shall be controlled’.

(c) Applicants applying for fresh empanelment or renewal of empanelment may require an
assessment at locations from where the applicant’s management functions and
inspection/conformity assessment activities are controlled, followed by site audit where
actual inspection is being carried out by the applicant. The applicant shall specify the
locations at which the Management System as per ISO/IEC 17020 or any other applicable
standard will be fully demonstrated. The purpose of the assessment is to evaluate the
Applicant’s Quality Management System including its implementation as well as its
competence to perform specific inspections/conformity assessment.

(d) The extent of the assessment will be determined by the Board and/or by the Accreditation
Body based on a review of the Applicant’s intended scope of inspection/conformity
assessment described in the application.

(e) A TPA shall provide the Assessment Team access to its facilities, premises, personnel,
documents and records necessary to assess conformance with ISO/IEC 17020 or any other
appropriate standard including PNGRB Regulations.

(f) The Accreditation Body shall submit its recommendation to the Board regarding TPA to
provide inspection/conformity assessment services under PNGRB Regulations only after the
adequacy of the documentation and the implementation of the Inspection/conformity
assessment programme as well as competence/relevant experience has been satisfactorily
demonstrated.

2-5 ISSUANCE OF APPROVAL

Upon completion of a successful assessment of the competence of the TPA for the scope of
inspection/conformity assessment applied for, the Accreditation Body shall recommend the TPA

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to the Board along with the scope for which TPA has been successfully assessed and accredited.
The Board shall examine in house assessment/ the recommendation of the Accreditation Body,
seek a presentation from the applicant if required and shall on satisfaction grant empanelment as
an Approved Agency by issuing letter of empanelment. The approved agency shall comply with
the terms and conditions of letter of empanelment, requirements of ISO/IEC 17020 and/or of any
other applicable Standards and/or of the Accreditation Body and the provisions of these
Regulations.

2-6 RENEWAL OF APPROVAL

No later than 6 months prior to the date of expiration of the validity of the empanelment, the
TPA shall apply to the Accreditation Body or to the Board directly in case no such body is
specified by the Board for the renewal of their empanelment.

2-7 Levy of Fees

The Board shall levy a nonrefundable amount of Rs. 1, 00,000/- as fees from the TPA seeking
empanelment and Rs 25000/- for subsequent renewal of empanelment as Approved Agency
provided the continuity of empanelment is maintained. The fee shall be received through
Approved Agency or by the Board directly in case no such body is specified by the Board, in the
form of demand draft in favour of Secretary, PNGRB payable at New Delhi.
4
[Application as well as subsequent renewal fees (non-refundable) for empanelment of
ThirdParty Inspection Agency shall be as per the provision 3 of the Petroleum and Natural Gas
Regulatory Board (Levy of Fee and Other Charges) Regulations, 2007 and its amendments from
time to time.]

4
Ins. by cl. (iv) of reg. (2), the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (Third Party Conformity Assessment)
Amendment Regulations, 2021 (w.e.f. 16.12.2021)

13
 FORMAT-1
Period of Carrying
Work Type/Scope Value of work
Sector Out Inspection
order of Inspection order
Work
1 1 1 1
2 2 2 2
City or Local Natural Gas
: : : :
Distribution Network
: : : :
5 5 5 5
Pipeline such as natural gas, 1 1 1 1
propane, butane etc. and the 2 2 2 2
hydrocarbons products which : : : :
remain in gaseous state at : : : :
NTP; 5 5 5 5
1 1 1 1
Hydrocarbons processing
2 2 2 2
installation (refinery, gas
: : : :
processing, LNG Re-
: : : :
gasification installations etc.);
5 5 5 5
Commercial petroleum
1 1 1 1
storage facilities, gas storage
2 2 2 2
facilities and terminals
: : : :
including storage facilities at
: : : :
LNG Re-gasification
5 5 5 5
terminals;
1 1 1 1
2 2 2 2
Petroleum Product Pipeline : : : :
: : : :
5 5 5 5
Hydrocarbons gas bottling
1 1 1 1
Installations having
2 2 2 2
receiving, storage and
: : : :
handling facilities including
: : : :
storage for LPG, propane and
5 5 5 5
butane;
1 1 1 1
Dispensing stations and retail 2 2 2 2
outlets; : : : :
: : : :

14
 5 5 5 5

1 1 1 1
2 2 2 2
Transportation of petroleum
: : : :
products by road;
: : : :
5 5 5 5
1 1 1 1
2 2 2 2
Others (please specify) : : : :
: : : :
5 5 5 5

Note: The applicant to provide

1) Experience for the areas/scope for which application has been made for empanelment as
TPA; and

2) Copies of Work Orders and Completion Certificates during the last 3 years related to the
scope applied for and duly stamped and certified by the authorized signatory

15
 FORMAT-2

1 Name of the Third Party Inspection Agency

2 Address (HO)
Address of office from where Inspection
Services are provided/managed (if different
from above)
Delhi/NCR Address, if any
3 Contact Person/ Email/ Contact Numbers:
4 Company Profile (Attach Separate Sheet if required)
Whether the TPIA has obtained the ISO
5 17020 certification under the scope for which YES/No (if yes clearly mention the scope)
empanelment is requested?

Total No. of years of work experience as a

6
technical inspection/audit agency

Total No. of Existing Manpower associated

7
with Inspection/ Audit related services

Details of Man Power Qualified for Technical Audits

No. of competent No. of competent

No. of Technical Managers
supervisors Inspectors
On On
On On On
On Regular Rolls Regular Regular
Contract Contract Contract
Rolls Rolls

Annual Turn Over (for Technical Inspection

8
related work for the last three years)

9 Net Worth (for the last three years)

Note: The manpower engaged by TPA on contract basis should be based upon a binding
agreement normally no less than a period of one year ensuring their availability for third party
inspection services to be undertaken by the TPA.

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 FORMAT- 3

Undertaking

I, _________________________________________________________authorized signatory of
M/s__________________________________ hereby confirm that the information given above
is true and correct. Any wrong information /misrepresentation/ suppression of facts will make
M/s______________________________ ineligible for empanelment as an approved agency.

Place: Signature of applicant

Date: Name of applicant

17
 Appendix-1
(see regulation 6 (2) (b))
5
[
S. No. Name of Installation Periodicity for T4S Periodicity for ERDMP
Audit (Years) Review and Certification
(Years)
1 Refinery 3 3
2 Gas Processing station 3 3
3 LNG Re-gasification Installation 3 3
4 Natural Gas Pipelines 3 5
5 Propane/ Butane Pipelines 3 5
6 Liquid Petroleum Product 3 5
Pipelines
7 Petroleum Storage Facilities 3 5
8 Gas Storage Facilities and 3 5
terminals including storage
facilities at LNG Regasification
terminals
9 Hydrocarbon gas bottling 3 5
Installations having receiving,
storage and handling facilities
including storage for LPG,
propane and butane;
10 City or Local Natural Gas 3 5
Distribution Network
11 Dispensing Stations and retail 3** 5
outlets
12 Transportation of Petroleum 3*** 5
Products by road
13 Any other installation as may be # #
notified by the Board from time to
time

# To be decided by the Board from time to time

**based on self-certification by the entity.
***to be verified along with the T4S inspection of installations or plants or depots or terminal or
like other places.”]

5
Subs. by sub-cl. (a) of cl. (v) of reg. (2), the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (Third Party Conformity
Assessment) Amendment Regulations, 2021 (w.e.f. 16.12.2021)

18
Note: (1) The periodicity specified above is maximum period in which audit is to be carried out.
However, the audit/review may be carried out by the entity whenever there is a major change,
modification, debottlenecking, expansion etc in installation and also in consideration of factors like
type of technology, levels of automation, age of plant, changes in the neighborhood such as
demography, coming up of hospitals, places of large congregation etc having potential to alter risk
level or have an impact to response measures to a risk or as may be required under any other
applicable Statutes.

6
[(2) The periodicity for verification of IMS documents shall be as specified in respective
regulations. However, the periodic third-party audit under Integrity Management Regulations for
City or Local Natural Gas Distribution (CGD) Networks, natural gas pipelines (NGPL) and
Petroleum and Petroleum Products Pipelines (PPPL) may be undertaken alongwith the thirdparty
audits under T4S Regulations with combined scope of both T4S and IMS regulations.

(3) The periodic third-party audit shall also cover the compliance of mitigation of any
nonconformity reported in the previous audits such as T4S or Integrity Management Audits or
internal audits or like other audits]

K. RAJESWARA RAO, OSD (R)

[Advt.-III/4/Exty./188/17/15]

Foot Note: The Principal regulations were notified vide F.No. PNGRB/M/(I)/T4S/Confo/1/2009,
dated 17.04.2015 and amended vide F. No. PNGRB/Tech/24-TPCA/(1)/2019 (P-354) dated 16th
December 2021.

6
Subs. by sub-cl. (b) of cl. (v) of reg. (2), the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (Third Party Conformity
Assessment) Amendment Regulations, 2021 (w.e.f. 16.12.2021)

19