As 2011 drew to a close, yet another Deepwater Horizon report surfaced, this time from the National Academy of Engineering. Russell McCulley reports on the findings, as well as other late-year news involving ongoing legal wrangling between BP and its Macondo contractors…
Smoke plume rising from Black Elk Energy production platformTwo contractors are missing and 11 were injured when an oil production platform offshore Louisiana caught on fire, the U.S. Coast Guard announced on 16 November 2012.At the time of the fire…
Specialist firefighting knowledge, strategic support and equipment is to be provided by Chubb Fire & Security for Total E&P UK under a five-year contract. Chubb’s Offshore Marine division will deliver the renewed contract, which covers the operator’s Alwyn North…
Human factors, such as lapses in concentration, mistakes and violations, are frequently cited as the root cause of incidents in the offshore oil & gas industry. Changing these behaviours has therefore been identified as key to reducing recordable incidents and improving overall safety performance…
Problems of the kind encountered by the Deepwater Horizon and Sedco 711 are not unique and being judgemental with the benefit of hindsight is futile, argues drilling consultant Dr John Thorogood. Pointing out that there is much still to be learned about human error…
An offshore scaffolding safety innovation from RBG has attracted industry plaudits aplenty since its launch last year and has already been adopted by Apache North Sea on a number of its platforms. In this opener to OE's HSE two-parter, Bill Abbott outlines the thinking behind PlusGard…
Citing a ‘renewed culture of safety' taking hold in the offshore oil & gas industry, the co-chairman of the presidential commission set up to investigate the Macondo disaster told attendees at the March CeraWeek conference in Houston that the…
New software developed by naval architects and marine engineering consultants Safety at Sea to address the International Maritime Organization's challenging regulations on a ship's safe return offers potential for aspects of offshore vessel design…
Norwegian operator Statoil acknowledged last month that it could have been clearer in its dialogue with Norway's Petroleum Safety Authority following the May 2010 incident where pressure build-up in well 34/10-C06A resulted in a near blowout and the shutdown of the Gullfaks C platform…
A little starpower lit up a rainy week in Stavanger, as Hollywood actor-turned-oil spill cleanup advocate Kevin Costner hit town for the ONS 2010 conference and exhibition. Russell McCulley reports.--Nearly 50,000 visitors coursed through the…
As a number of Caribbean nations set sights on developing potential deepwater reserves, concerns have surfaced about the region’s ability to respond to a Macondo-style subsea leak. The topic is especially prominent in a swath of sea where tourists…
New software for the offshore and shipping industries, including optimal voyage planning for safe journeys and minimum fuel consumption, are expected to emerge from a partnership agreement between Star Information Systems and weather experts StormGeo…
The recent run of success at Denmark’s Viking Life-Saving Equipment continues, with the privately owned, Esbjerg-based company insisting it’s all down to ‘solid growth in a market that can be as turbulent as the seas for which its products are designed’ – the offshore industry…
Against a background of continuing financial uncertainty the oil price remains reasonably high, as does the level of activity in the North Sea, particularly in Norway with the planned development of the substantial Johan Sverdrup find. Reserves estimated at 1…
Integrated control and safety systems provided by Emerson Process Management under a $23 million contract from BP will help manage operations on the two new bridge-linked platforms to be installed West of Shetland for the Clair Ridge development…