100 percent of propane cylinders failed safety checks during recent inspection by Costa Rica regulator

(Archive)

December 8^th, 2015 (ICR News) Inspectors from the Regulatory Authority for Public Services (ARESEP) visited nine propane bottling plants over the course of the last two weeks of November, inspecting 2,500 propane cylinders intended to be distributed to the public and every cylinder inspected failed quality and safety guidelines defined by law.

“100 percent of the cylinders inspected failed to pass the technical evaluation,” the regulator said in a statement.

The inspections follow recent guidelines meant to more rigorously control the quality and safety of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) (commonly known as “cooking gas” in Costa Rica and “propane” in North America) cylinders and to destroy cylinders that are unfit for use.

During the first half of the year, ARESEP regulators inspected 14,835 cylinders and found that 61 percent of them failed established quality and safety guidelines.

Other problems included dents and other damage to the cylinder, leaks, excessive rust and corrosion, and lack of mandatory labeling.

An estimated 615,000 homes in Costa Rica rely on the product as an essential cooking fuel.

Distributors will have a chance to repair the 2,500 cylinders found faulty in the most recent inspections, but the cylinders will have to be re-inspected by the regulator before being put back into circulation.  Regulators track the cylinders by serial number, and they must be destroyed if they fail follow-up inspection.