The North Sea oil and gas industry announced a major safety move yesterday in an effort to prevent another offshore disaster.
The target is to cut the number of leaks on offshore installations by 50% over the next three years.
The initiative was announced by industry body Oil and Gas UK (OGUK) and the offshore safety initiative Step Change in Safety.
Step Change has asked the managing directors of its member companies to build this reduction target into their business plans.
Only last week, the industry was told more needed to be done to prevent a deep-water drilling disaster off Scotland.
MPs on the Commons ener-gy and climate change committee also raised doubts about how oil-spill equipment would cope in the harsh conditions west of Shetland if there was a major incident.
The industry was warned last summer about its safety record after a report on the number of major oil and gas leaks from UK platforms.
Just months after the huge BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, the UK’s Health and Safety Executive (HSE) said the number of potentially dangerous hydrocarbon releases in British waters had reached a five-year high.
The provisional total of leaks between April 1, 2009, and March 31 last year was 85, compared with 61 over the previous year.
Steve Walker, head of HSE’s offshore division, said then: “I am particularly disappointed, and concerned, that major and significant hydrocarbon releases are up by more than a third on last year.
“This is a key indicator of how well the offshore industry is managing its major-accident potential, and it really must up its game to identify and rectify the root causes of such events.”
RMT union regional organiser Jake Molloy said last night: “The companies have committed to this 50% reduction and I hope they can achieve the target. The big increase in leaks was a very worrying trend. There is commitment to this initiative at the top level, but it’s what happens on the ground offshore that will make the difference.”
Recent incidents include a major gas leak on a North Sea platform belonging to Chevron. More than 100 workers believed they were going to have to evacuate the Alba Northern in November after gas was released accidently. The HSE was brought in to investigate.
OGUK and Step Change said yesterday the number of accidental hydrocarbon releases had almost halved since 1997 due to collaborative efforts by the industry through Step Change.
However, the bodies added: “In recent years, this progress appears to have stalled and the industry is keen to kick-start a further downward push on the statistics.
“While the new 50% reduction target has been agreed by the UK offshore oil and gas industry as a whole, Step Change in Safety has asked the managing directors of its member companies to build this reduction target into their business plans.”
Step Change’s co-chairman, John Forrest, who is also Talisman’s senior vice-president and UK country manager, said: “I am very pleased by this strong commitment to tackle hydrocarbon releases and I’m encouraged that senior industry leaders across the board have taken this opportunity to prove they put safety at the very forefront.
“Since Step Change in Safety was created in 1997, there has been a 44% reduction in major and significant hydrocarbon releases. However, the last few years have shown the numbers of hydrocarbon releases have been flat-lining. We all took the decision that now is the time to bolster our efforts in order to drive this figure down even further.
“There are multiple barriers in place to stop releases of oil and gas. However, it’s important to remember that, even if they do occur, there are further multiple barriers to prevent them escalating into a more serious incident.”
Step Change will help drive the planned reduction in leaks by sharing with its member companies analysis of the root causes of incidents, addressing the management of ageing assets and circulating best practice.
