INTRODUCTION
With the availability of natural gas in South America and the increase of energy costs, industry is ready to use this new source of energy. Natural gas from Bolivia is transported to Brazil in an 18-in. pipeline to consumers. The total confirmed reserve of Bolivian natural gas is about 108 billion m3. The Brazilian Program will consume about 16 billion m3 of natural gas during the next 20 years. This paper covers a risk analysis that was performed to comply with the gas pipeline licensing system requirements of the Brazilian Federal Environmental Agency (IBAMA). Hazard identification techniques, such as preliminary hazard analysis (PHA) and event tree analysis (ETA), were used [1–4]. Consequences were simulated using CHEMS-PLUS software [5] to determine the hazards to people and facilities. Finally, process safety measures are recommended to decrease pipeline risks.