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Title: Features Of Allocation Systems Incorporating Long Pipelines
Author: Phillip Stockton
Source: 2009 South East Asia Flow Measurement Conference
Year Published: 2009
Abstract: There are two main approaches to systems of allocation that include long pipelines. The first accounts for each users hydrocarbons within the pipeline itself. The second method ignores the transit time in the pipeline and allocates the metered quantities exiting the pipeline based on the metered quantities input into the pipeline on the same day using this approach parties will not be allocated precisely what they input to the pipeline on a day, but over a period of time there is an expectation that any daily gains and losses will even themselves out. This paper examines instances when this is not necessarily true depending on the allocation equations employed. It demonstrates, using simple models and results from a real allocation system, how parties can be systematically under and over allocated hydrocarbons due to the mathematics of the allocation agreement. It goes on to examine the reasons for this unexpected and subtle bias in the allocation system and presents methods to assess the stability of the equations and approaches to eliminate allocation bias. It also discusses the wider implications for allocation systems in general, particularly in terms of how the assumptions, equations and logic of a system should be tested at the conceptual development stage to prevent problems occurring. In Section 2 a simple model is used to describe an allocation system associated with a pipeline. This model illustrates the basic process and presents the main features of the allocation methodology. Data from an analogous real system is presented to highlight a problem with the allocation results of such a system. In Section 3 the model is then used to analyse the allocation system behaviour without the obfuscating effects of measurement uncertainty in the real data.

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