New U.K. Offshore Safety Regulations Become Law Today
The 2005 Regulations reflect the experience and changes in the offshore oil and gas industry since 1993. They will cut bureaucracy for industry and allow Health and Safety Executive (HSE) inspectors to carry out more planned interventions.
Ian Whewell, acting head of HSE's Offshore Division, said today: "The Safety Case Regulations continue to be the foundation of a safe and sustainable UK Continental Shelf (UKCS). The new regulations will build on the successes of the previous version and ensure that the post-Piper Alpha safety regime remains relevant and proportionate to the changing nature of the UK offshore industry. The industry, including workforce representatives, has played an invaluable role in developing the new regulations. HSE believes that they will provide real benefits in terms of reduced bureaucracy, enabling us to increase offshore inspection visits, and extend the role of safety representatives. Guidance on the regulations will be published in April and I would urge duty holders to engage with the new requirements."
Key changes introduced by the 2005 Regulations include:
- The requirement for duty holders to send an early design notification, instead of a design safety case, to HSE when establishing a new production installation;
- Duty holders are required to carry out a thorough and fundamental review of their safety cases at least every five years, or as directed by HSE;
- The present requirement to re-submit safety cases every three years has been removed (inspectors will be checking to see that safety cases are being kept up to date through inspection);
- New duties require licensees to ensure anyone they appoint as an operator is capable of fulfilling their legal responsibilities for safety;
- Combined operations safety cases have been replaced by notifications, which do not need HSE acceptance; and
- The Offshore Installations (Safety Representatives and Safety Committees) Regulations have been amended to extend consultation with safety representatives to reviewing and revising a safety case, as well as preparing one.
- Falcon Oil Declares Commercial Flow Test Results for Shenandoah Well
- Macquarie Strategists Expect Brent Oil Price to Grind Higher
- Japan Failing to Meet Corporate Demand for Clean Power: Amazon
- Pennsylvania County Joins List of Local Govts Suing Big Oil over Climate
- UK Oil Regulator Publishes New Emissions Reduction Plan
- PetroChina Posts Higher Annual Profit on Higher Production
- US, SKorea Launch Task Force to Stop Illicit Refined Oil Flows into NKorea
- McDermott Settles Reficar Dispute
- Russian Navy Enters Warship-Crowded Red Sea Amid Houthi Attacks
- USA Commercial Crude Oil Inventories Increase
- New China Climate Chief Says Fossil Fuels Must Keep a Role
- Oil Demand Outpaces Expectations, Testing Calculus on Peak Crude
- House Passes Protecting American Energy Production Act
- TotalEnergies Restarts Production in Denmark's Biggest Gas Field
- USA Oil and Gas Job Figures Jump
- Republican Lawmakers Say IEA Has Abandoned Energy Security Mission
- Blockchain Demands Attention in Oil and Gas
- Houthis Warn Saudi Arabia of Retaliation If It Backs USA Attacks
- Macquarie Sees USA Oil Production Exiting 2024 at 14MM Barrels Per Day
- Summer Pump Prices Set to Hit $4 a Gallon Just as Americans Hit the Road
- New China Climate Chief Says Fossil Fuels Must Keep a Role
- Chinese Mega Company Makes Major Oilfield Discovery
- VIDEO: Missile Attack Kills Crew Transiting Gulf of Aden
- Norway Regulator Blasts Proposal to Halt New Oil and Gas Permits
- Chinese Mega Company Makes Another Major Oilfield Discovery
- What Is the Biggest Risk to Offshore Oil and Gas Personnel in 2024?
- Vessel Sinks in Red Sea After Missile Strike
- Exxon Rights in Stabroek Do Not Apply to Hess Merger with Chevron: Hess
- Equinor Makes Discovery in North Sea
- Analysts Reveal Latest Oil Price Outlook Following OPEC+ Cut Extension