# EN 1473 — Onshore LNG installation design

> EN 1473 is the European standard for the design of onshore liquefied natural gas (LNG) installations — liquefaction, storage, regasification, transfer and handling. It sets a risk-based approach to safety distances, cryogenic containment and the LNG-specific hazards of rollover, rapid phase transition and BLEVE. ISO 16903 is its international companion on LNG material characteristics.

- Source : https://industryhub.site/en/standards/en-1473
- Body : CEN
- Family : LNG / Cryogenic
- Status : current
- First published : 1997
- Latest revision : 2021
- Edition : EN 1473:2021
- Next revision : Active maintenance
- Access : Paid (CEN national bodies)
- Language : English

## Document structure

- **EN 1473** — Design of onshore LNG installations (this standard) : Guidelines for the design, construction and operation of onshore LNG installations — liquefaction, storage, vaporisation, transfer and handling. Applies to plants with LNG storage above 200 t.
- **ISO 16903** — LNG characteristics & materials (companion) : Characteristics of LNG influencing the design and selection of materials. The international reference on how a cryogenic, flammable liquid behaves — the input to EN 1473's material choices.
- **ISO 16924 / ISO 20519** — Fuelling and bunkering (adjacent) : ISO 16924 covers LNG fuelling stations; ISO 20519 covers bunkering of gas-fuelled ships. The small-scale and marine-supply counterparts to EN 1473's large onshore terminals.

## Key concepts

- **Cryogenic LNG at -162 °C** : Natural gas is liquefied at about -162 °C, shrinking its volume roughly 600-fold. At that temperature ordinary carbon steel becomes brittle, so EN 1473 drives the choice of cryogenic materials and the design against cold-induced failure.
- **Risk-based safety distances** : Rather than fixed setbacks alone, EN 1473 uses quantitative assessment of thermal radiation, gas dispersion and overpressure to set separation distances to people, buildings and the site boundary.
- **Containment of storage tanks** : LNG tanks are built as single, double or full containment, with a bund or secondary container to catch a leak. The containment concept is central to limiting the consequence of a tank failure.
- **Rollover** : Stratified LNG layers of different density can suddenly mix and release a large volume of vapour — rollover. Tank design, filling practice and monitoring exist to prevent it.
- **Rapid phase transition (RPT) (RPT)** : If LNG contacts water it can flash to vapour almost instantly, a physical explosion without combustion. EN 1473 addresses RPT in the design of transfer and spill areas.
- **BLEVE and pool fire** : A boiling-liquid expanding-vapour explosion and large pool fires are the major fire scenarios. Bunding, spacing, detection and emergency isolation are designed to prevent escalation.

## Designing for liquid gas at -162 °C

To ship and store natural gas economically, it is cooled until it becomes liquid — shrinking its volume roughly 600-fold. That convenience comes with a demanding hazard set: a flammable, cryogenic liquid at about **-162 °C**, held in large tanks near people and property. **EN 1473** is the European standard that governs how an **onshore LNG installation** is designed so those hazards stay contained.

## What EN 1473 governs

The standard gives guidelines for the design, construction and operation of onshore LNG installations — **liquefaction, storage, regasification, transfer and handling** — and applies to plants storing more than **200 t** of LNG. Its method is **risk-based**: rather than fixed setbacks alone, it uses quantitative assessment of **thermal radiation, gas dispersion and overpressure** to set the separation distances to people, buildings and the boundary. Storage tanks are built as single, double or **full containment**, backed by a bund that can catch a release — the containment concept being the core defence against a tank failure.

## The LNG-specific hazards

LNG fails in ways ordinary fuels do not. At -162 °C it embrittles **carbon steel**, so cryogenic-grade materials are mandatory — the area where **ISO 16903** provides the international reference on LNG characteristics and material selection. **Rollover** can release a large vapour volume when stratified layers suddenly mix. **Rapid phase transition** turns spilled LNG to vapour almost instantly on contact with water, a physical explosion without combustion. And **BLEVE** and large **pool fires** are the escalation scenarios that spacing, detection and emergency isolation are designed to prevent.

## Where it sits

EN 1473 sets the installation design; other standards protect it in operation. Safety instrumented systems that trip the plant follow [IEC 61511](/en/standards/iec-61511), built on the functional-safety framework of [IEC 61508](/en/standards/iec-61508). Because flammable gas defines the site, the explosive-atmosphere regime applies throughout: the [ATEX 2014/34/EU](/en/standards/atex-2014-34-eu) directive for equipment and [IEC 60079](/en/standards/iec-60079) for its design and installation in hazardous areas.

## Applicable industries

LNG import, export and regasification terminals, Peak-shaving and small-scale LNG plants, LNG bunkering and fuelling infrastructure, Gas utilities, EPC contractors and safety authorities

## References & further reading

- [BS EN 1473 — onshore LNG installations (BSI)](https://landingpage.bsigroup.com/LandingPage/Undated?UPI=000000000001135603)