SAFETY chiefs shut a North Sea platform once linked to Piper Alpha over fears that not enough action was being taken to prevent an explosion, the Press and Journal can reveal.
The Health and Safety Executive has delivered a damning verdict on Talisman’s Claymore platform after five serious leaks in the space of eight weeks.
The prohibition notice served on the firm – which halted production in August – has been made public for the first time and reveals a catalogue of failings.
The agency said the leaks, between May and June, showed the firm had not taken proper measures “to prevent fire and explosion”.
It accuses Talisman of not having in place an effective combination of engineering, procedural and management controls to prevent accidental leaks of flammable substances.
Last night the North Sea’s leading trade unionist said he had rarely seen such serious language in a warning from the agency.
Claymore is one of a complex series of oilfields which was once connected to the Piper Alpha platform, which exploded in 1988, killing 167 men.
The two platforms, which were 20 miles apart, were installed in 1976.
After the Claymore was shut in August, Talisman’s UK senior vice-president, Geoff Holmes, said: “Any hydrocarbon release is unacceptable and our performance has clearly not met our own standards or those demanded by the HSE.
“Talisman is fully committed to the cross-industry initiative to reduce unintentional releases by 50% by 2013.
“We will continue to work as a company, with other operators and with the regulator to improve our performance in this key area.”
The leaks – four of which were classed as significant – happened on May 1, twice on June 7, June 8 and June 30.
The HSE notice highlights “inadequacies in the integrity of plant and equipment” on the platform, as well as the firm’s “control and supervision of operating and maintenance activities”.
It adds: “In addition you have failed to take sufficient investigation and prompt remedial action where necessary so as to prevent similar incidents in the future.”
Union leader Jake Molloy, of the RMT in Aberdeen, said he was shocked by the scale of the problems.
“This notice from the HSE indicates the seriousness of the situation on the installation,” he said.
“This is almost a throwback to a bygone era.
“The language used is the most serious I have heard used in a notice of this type – it is a quite appalling state of play.”
He added: “When Talisman first came on the scene they were very open and transparent. But I sense a real change in their approach.”
The Claymore – which is made up of two steel bridge-linked platforms – is located 100 miles north-east of Aberdeen.
Talisman said last night that production on the platform had resumed and the problems were resolved.
The notice has emerged just days after the European Union announced plans to seize legislative control of the oil and gas industry.
Energy commissioner Gunther Oettinger said the likelihood of a major offshore accident remained “unacceptably high” after BP’s Gulf of Mexico disaster last year and that a new safety regime was needed.
Under draft plans revealed in Brussels on Thursday, the EU would set the rules governing safety in the North Sea and how those rules were met.
They include proposals to make companies prepare detailed major hazard reports outlining how they would tackle emergencies – before they are given permission to drill.
Information on all spills would be made available to the public, and licensing laws would be tightened to ensure firms had the technical and financial capability to explore.
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