Update: 17 February 2015 - BW Offshore has confirmed that the death toll has now risen to six after an explosion on the the company's Cidade São Mateus FPSO offshore Brazil.
The body of one of the previously four missing Brazilian workers was discovered yesterday evening and transported to shore, BW Offshore said. Three crew are still missing and rescue efforts are ongoing. The company, who operated the FPSO for Petrobras, said five personnel continue to receive medical care in a hospital.
Update: 13 February 2015 - Brazilian regulator ANP confirmed on Friday that five people have died in the blast, four Brazilian workers are still missing and in total 26 people were injured. The four missing have yet to be found. The FPSO's operator BW Offshore said on Friday that of the five dead four are Brazilian nationals and one is Indian. BW Offshore said the unit hull is confirmed to be intact and that a specialist team returned to the FPSO to evaluate if conditions are sufficiently safe to allow the search and rescue efforts to continue.
12 February 2015 - Brazilian regulator ANP (The National Agency of Petroleum, Natural Gas and Biofuels) confirmed that the death toll following an explosion on the Cidade São Mateus FPSO, offshore Espirito Santo state, Brazil, has risen to five. Additionally, 25 workers were injured in the blast - two critically - and another four workers are missing, the regulator said.
BW Offshore confirmed the five bodies have been brought to shore.
BW Offshore also confirmed that four Brazilian personnel remain unaccounted for and seven personnel are receiving medical care in a hospital for their injuries. The number of injured disputes an earlier statement by a local oil workers union, Sindipetro-ES, which placed the injured count at 10.
The unit is said to be intact and a specialist team has returned to the unit to evaluate if conditions are sufficiently safe to allow the search and rescue efforts to continue, said BW Offshore in its latest statement.
"This is a terrible day for the families of the men we have lost and our hearts go out to them. We remain determined to continue the search for those still missing", said Carl Arnet, CEO.
The explosion happened on Wednesday (February 11) afternoon around 12:50 local time, said the FPSO's operator BW Offshore.
ANP said that search efforts were halted around 2:30 a.m. (February 12) local time due to flooding in the engine room, which is adjacent to the pump house where the explosion was thought to have originated. The flooding prevented a team of 10 fire fighters from accessing the pump house to search for other missing workers.
BW Offshore's CEO Carl Arnet said today: "This is a tragic day, and our primary focus is on the crew and their families. We cannot rest until the last four of our men are found. We express our gratitude to Petrobras and the Brazilian authorities for the tireless efforts in this time and wish to thank our peers and partners for their support."
BW Offshore said there were a total 74 people on board at the time of the incident. All have now been evacuated from the vessel.
BW Offshore, which operates the unit for Brazil's Petrobras on a contract out to 2018, says production on the unit was shut in and the unit shut down. ANP said that 80% of the hull had been scanned without finding damage, but noted that crews from BW Offshore will later inspect the vessel for damage.
Before the blast, the FPSO was working the Camarupim and Camarupim Norte fields, about 120km offshore. The FPSO began production at Camarupim in 2009. The concession is operated by Petrobras (100%) and the Camarupim Norte concession is a partnership between Petrobras (75%) and Ouro Preto Energia (25%). Petrobras places production at the platform at 2.2 MMcm/d of natural gas, representing approximately 3% of Petrobras natural gas production in Brazil.
On 11 February, local union Sindipetro-ES said that the cause of the explosion is tied to a gas leak in the pump room.
“The fire has been controlled and there is no risk of further explosions,” the union said.
Image: BW Offshore
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