Information on pipeline licensing and approvals can be found below:
1. Guidance
Application requirements can be found in Chapter 5 of Directive PNG034.
Legislative Requirements
The following documents provide legal authority to regulate the design, construction, operation, discontinuation and abandonment of oil, natural gas and other pipelines in accordance with the latest CSA (Canadian Standards Association) Z662, for Oil and Gas Pipeline Systems:
- The Pipelines Act, 1998
- The Pipelines Administration and Licensing Regulations (PALR)
- Directive PNG034: Saskatchewan Pipelines Code
It is recommended that you become familiar with these materials prior to initiating pipeline or flowline applications.
Licensing Requirements
The deadline to retroactively license designated pipelines passed on January 20, 2024.
Any existing designated pipeline not licensed by January 20, 2024, may be subject to administrative penalties under The Pipelines Act, 1998 and the PALR.
Pipeline operators shall self-disclose any unlicensed designated pipelines that are discovered by promptly notifying the ER Service Desk. In which case, 90 days will be provided to retroactively license the pipeline in IRIS. Persons shall also notify the ER Service Desk of any discovered unlicensed pipelines belonging to another operator or of unknown ownership. The Retroactive Licensing Template to bulk upload applications into IRIS will remain available for the foreseeable future.
Routine and Non-Routine Pipeline Licence Applications
Pipeline licence applications are determined to be either routine or non-routine by IRIS:
- Routine: No risk rules were triggered by the application. Upon submission, the applicant has immediate approval to begin field work related to the approval.
- Non Routine: Data in the application triggered one or more risk rules, meaning that the application requires additional review by a subject matter expert before a determination is made.
Retroactive Pipeline Licence Audits
As part of its ongoing compliance verification efforts, the ministry has undertaken audits on the submission of retroactive pipeline submissions. The purpose of these audits is to identify data anomalies in submissions to maintain data integrity as well as to identify potential issues so that licensees can avoid these issues in future submissions. Audit criteria has been provided to assist licence holders to address identified data integrity issues.
2. Eligibility
Before submitting an application in IRIS, applicants must:
- Have an Integrated Resource Information System (IRIS) account and the appropriate permissions assigned by your Security Administrator to submit a pipeline licence application.
- Be registered with Information Services Corporation (ISC) as a corporation to do business in Saskatchewan.
- Obtain any other approvals needed from government agencies or ministries relating to the design, construction and operation of a proposed pipeline.
3. How to Apply
To apply for a pipeline licence:
- Ensure you meet all eligibility requirements.
- Log in to IRIS and complete the pipeline licence application process.
4. Apply
5. Further Information
Detailed information on Pipeline Licensing
For more information:
- The Pipeline Licensing User Manual provides the applicant information on how the IRIS pipeline module works, data required, risk rules, disclosure questions, attachments and how to populate the available templates (if applicable) for each pipeline business process.
- Licence transfers applications for Pipe/Flowline, Wells, and Facilities are now completed in IRIS. For detailed information please refer to the Application to Transfer Well, Facility, Pipeline and Flowline Licences webpage.
- The Pipeline Licensing Online Learning is a tool that outlines step by step how to complete each pipeline application and reporting process in IRIS.
- The List of Licensed Pipelines in Saskatchewan is a weekly extract that provides information on pipeline licences and their associated segments.
- The Well List provides surface locations information on all wells licensed in the province. This information can be used as a starting point for retroactive licensing of flowlines.
- IRIS Help Screens are available for each business process found in IRIS.
Spatial Map
The Spatial Map enhances the interactive map-based experience for pipeline activities in the IRIS system with the following highlights:
- Provides a GIS Map screen within the IRIS application for authenticated IRIS users.
- Map viewer can be accessed from the main menu in IRIS.
- Map layers panel allows you to effectively switch from one layer to another.
- Leverages the Enterprise GIS (eGIS) data warehouse for the display of spatial features.
- For specifically configured layers, provides context-sensitive action links that navigate users to existing screens within the IRIS application.
- Provides most standard industry mapping tools: pan, zoom, feature selection, feature query, measurements to name a few.
Further information and assistance for the new mapping feature can be found in the Spatial Map Help Document.
Saskatchewan GeoPlanner
The GeoPlanner tool is a web-enabled geo-spatial planning and decision tool that identifies base, site sensitive features from multiple ministries and agencies data, to assist with pre-planning and development of oil and gas wells, pipelines and facilities. It provides users the ability to view and map their proposed project and generate a report that lists potential areas of concern to be addressed or that may require additional approval(s) or other land uses requiring provincial government approvals.
Saskatchewan GeoAtlas
The Saskatchewan Mining and Petroleum GeoAtlas application is intended to provide a portal to public geoscience, minerals- and petroleum-related information.