Workers in the fast-growing offshore renewables industry could die unless safety lessons are learned from the oil and gas industry, delegates at the opening day of the All-Energy show in Aberdeen were warned yesterday.
Alistair Birnie, chief executive of industry body Subsea UK, wants the offshore renewables business to assess risks involved in its operations plus make sure it has safe and competent employees.
He said: “In oil and gas, we have seen what can happen if safety is not a priority and the risks not fully understood and managed.
“We learned the hard way and lives were lost. The offshore renewables sector must appreciate the hostile environment in which it is working and make sure that it has done everything it can to ensure the safety of its people and mitigate the risks.”
With major expansion in offshore construction and maintenance, Mr Birnie feared there would not be enough skilled and competent people around to do the work.
He said: “A key underlying finding on many offshore incidents, arguably all, has been the need to develop competency and experience.
“We must therefore be even more diligent in understanding and managing the risks in terms of competency, capability and capacity. A safe and competent workforce requires training and education, as well as codes of practice and standards.”
The offshore renewables industry may be forging ahead, but Mr Birnie believed it had not properly thought through how it would manage safety when it came to marine construction and maintenance.
He added: “It is easy to fall into the trap of design based purely on engineering and commercial drivers. Managing risk is about safety, technical, commercial and reputational issues. All of which need to be fully understood and addressed before we go too far down the road.”
Subsea UK said now was the time to take the opportunity in the renewables sector to learn from the oil and gas industry to use processes which had been developed and to take advantage of what has already been learned.
Mr Birnie added: “Some of the offshore project designs coming forward from the renewables sector appear to have ignored basic safety guidelines, adding significant risk to offshore operations. Leadership in safety is a major consideration. Attitudes must start from the top.
“There is criticism among the renewables industry that the offshore oil and gas sector is too expensive and that the processes are gold-plated.
“I challenge that. We have the most competitive subsea sector anywhere in the world, and we very much take safety seriously. If cost is to be the sole driver in the renewables sector, be prepared for casualties.”
Skill shortages, training and industry standards urgently need to be addressed if the UK is to fully harness its renewable energy ambitions. These are among preliminary findings from a study into the transfer of oil and gas expertise into the renewable energy sector.
The EU-funded Power Cluster study is being supported by Aberdeen Renewable Energy Group and the East of England Energy Group.
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