Join our crew and become one of the 104,017 members that receive our newsletter.

Cost Cuts Appear to Harm Norway Oil Industry Safety -Watchdog

Cost Cuts Appear to Harm Norway Oil Industry Safety -Watchdog

Reuters
Total Views: 30
February 20, 2017

One of the incidents in October occurred aboard the Statoil-operated Songa Endurance, pictured here, which suffered control incident at the Troll field in the Norwegian North Sea. File photo: Songa Offshore

ReutersBy Nerijus Adomaitis

OSLO, Feb 20 (Reuters) – Cost cuts by Norway’s oil and gas industry appear to have contributed to a rise in accidents in recent years, the head of the country’s Petroleum Safety Authority (PSA) said on Monday.

Oil firms have slashed spending since 2014 in a bid to stay profitable at a time when the price of crude has fallen by more than 50 percent.

“In summary, we see that developments over the past two years have been characterised by security challenges and serious situations,” Anne Myhrvold said in an interview published on the PSA’s website. “Cost cuts appear to be a contributing factor.”

The PSA later removed the posting from its web site, saying it had been intended for publication later this week. A spokeswoman confirmed the report however and said the PSA would make further comments on Feb. 23.

In total, the regulator started eight investigation into safety incidents and accidents last year, including three serious gas leaks, two fires, two serious well control incidents and one serious injury, Myhrvold said in the interview.

Four of the incidents took place in October at onshore and offshore facilities operated by state-controlled oil major Statoil, triggering inquiries both by the PSA and the company itself.

Statoil later said some of the accidents could have led to a loss of life under certain circumstances, and that a lack of maintenance was to blame, but added this had been the result of technical decisions and not cost cuts.

The company declined to give further comments on Monday.

Norway’s government has decided to appoint a public commission to look into the offshore safety situation and whether there was a link to cost cuts. (Editing by Terje Solsvik and Susan Thomas)

(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2017.

Weekly Insights from the Helm

Dive into a sea of information with our meticulously curated weekly “Dispatch” email. It’s more than just a newsletter; it’s your personal maritime briefing.

Sign Up
Back to Main
polygon icon polygon icon

Why Join gCaptain Club?

Be Informed: Stay updated with the latest maritime news and trends.

Connect: Network with a community of maritime professionals and enthusiasts.

Gain Insights: Receive exclusive content and personal perspectives from our CEO.

Sign Up
close

JOIN OUR CREW

Maritime and offshore news trusted by our 104,017 members delivered daily straight to your inbox.

gCaptain’s full coverage of the maritime shipping industry, including containerships, tankers, dry bulk, LNG, breakbulk and more.