The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is investigating after workers at a yard in Seaton Carew flagged a series of severe incidents during upgrade work on a Valaris rig.
Able UK’s yard near Hartlepool is currently hosting the Valaris 92 jack-up rig – also known as the Ensco 92 – for upgrade and steel replacement work carried out by construction services group Enerpro.
An HSE spokesperson told Energy Voice: “HSE has been investigating concerns raised in relation to repair and refurbishment work on Ensco 92 rig at Seaton Carew.
“HSE has taken enforcement action and the dutyholder is being monitored to ensure improvements in standards of safety and health are implemented.”
Posting on an online message board for offshore workers, an anonymous whistleblower described the project as “the most unsafe job I have ever seen in all my years.”
“It has got so bad that the men and I have notified HSE.”
“I honestly can’t believe no one has been killed,” they said, detailing a series of injuries allegedly suffered by site workers, though these could not be independently verified.
A spokesperson for Enerpro said: “Enerpro is supporting a Special Periodic Survey campaign for Valaris on the Valaris 92, currently located onshore in Hartlepool.
“We are working closely with our client to ensure work is delivered in accordance with relevant industry standards and regulations to safeguard personnel.”
Safety ‘at the forefront’
In June, the Thurso-based contractor posted an advert seeking specialist oil and gas construction and maintenance roles for “a four-week onshore oil and gas project based in Hartlepool.”
The advert said short-term contracts would support “rig upgrade and steel replacement project for a leading drilling service provider,” with the project in question believed to be the Valaris 92.
According to Valaris’ (NYSE:VAL) latest fleet status report, the jack-up unit is under contract to Harbour Energy until August 2023, with 45 days of planned maintenance scheduled for Q3 this year.
A spokesperson for Valaris confirmed that the 92 rig was undergoing a five yearly Class Special Survey in Hartlepool, which includes various inspections and hull repairs which the company has sub-contracted to “specialised third-party service providers.”
“UK HSE representatives have inspected the site on several occasions and Valaris and its contractors have been working in close collaboration with the authorities to ensure that the work is conducted in compliance with all pertinent standards and regulations,” they said.
“As in the conduct of our offshore operations, the safety of all personnel involved is at the forefront of our preoccupations.”
A spokesperson for Able said the company was aware of “a number of recent incidents” and has been in contact with the HSE, but confirmed it has no direct involvement with work at the site.
“Any issues relating to the Valaris 92 rig are matters solely for the operator and the specific contractor. Able is simply the landlord providing a suitable berth,” the spokesperson said.
© Able UKBrent Bravo
The Able UK yard has been the subject of serious safety incidents in the past.
In March the group was fined £200,000 by Teesside Magistrates Court after a worker suffered life-threatening injuries while working to decommission a former North Sea oil and gas installation.
On July 31 2019, the worker fell 15 metres after a platform he was working on unexpectedly collapsed during the dismantling of the Brent Bravo at Seaton Port.
An HSE investigation into the incident found that the civil engineering group failed to carry out a full structural appraisal of the platform prior to demolition.
The company pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 2(1) of The Health and Safety at Work act 1974.
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