Posted in accidents, tagged accidents, Burma, oil well on October 25, 2010| Leave a Comment »
Odd Finnestad alerted me to this tragic incident reported in the Bangkok Post:
At least 14 people have been killed and 58 more injured in a fire at an oil well in central Burma, an official in the military-ruled country said Monday.
Will we ever learn the details?
Posted in conferences, tagged HSE, IRF, Jane Cutler, Magne Ognedal, Mark Fleming, NOPSA, PSA, safety culture, Steve Walker, vancouver on October 24, 2010| Leave a Comment »
Firstly, major kudos to the Canadians for organizing a great conference in Vancouver, a wonderful city. The Newfoundland-Labrador and Nova Scotia Petroleum Boards, and the National Energy Board were outstanding hosts, and Max, Howard, Stuart, Sean, Bharat, and the folks at Venue West did a great job with the arrangements. The International Regulators’ Offshore Safety Conference was a huge success thanks to their efforts.
The international leaders in Vancouver were in full agreement that the key to long term safety achievement is the strength and vitality of the safety culture in the operating companies, contractors, and regulatory organizations. How is such a culture encouraged and achieved? As NOPSA CEO Jane Cutler has said “safety culture is what you do when no one is watching.” Inspections are a necessary regulatory tool, but if they are too frequent they send the message that the government is responsible for safety, and that operators and workers can relax their guard. As Magne Ognedal (PSA-Norway) has frequently said, safety must be managed by the “owner” of the facility and the risk, with the government holding the owner accountable and insisting on excellence.
Steve Walker, UK HSE chief, said that regulators must encourage a “beyond compliance” culture and serve as catalysts for learning and achievement. Regulators can never be satisfied; they should be negative thinkers searching for the operations, processes, and behaviors that might trigger the next major accident. Dr. Mark Fleming from St. Mary’s University in Halifax believes that safety culture can in fact be regulated, not in the traditional sense, but by requiring companies to have systems in place for promoting and measuring the organizational culture.
Regulators must also look at their own safety culture. Are they focused solely on compliance and “command and control,” or are they investigating risks, assessing management programs, and evaluating performance? Are regulatory employees free to investigate and inquire, or are they mere implementers of management directives? Are employees rewarded for sustaining the hierarchy or challenging the status quo? Are they expected to explain why accidents can’t happen again or figure out how they can?
Much more on these and other Vancouver topics in the near future.
Posted in Uncategorized on October 24, 2010| Leave a Comment »
In case you haven’t seen this video from the Atwood Eagle offshore Australia.
Posted in accidents, tagged helicopters, Mexico on October 24, 2010| Leave a Comment »
Posted in Uncategorized on October 15, 2010| 2 Comments »
Posting will be suspended (hold the applause :)) while our large international staff attends the IRF Safety Conference and engages in deep thought and meditation. After this period of reflection and renewal, BOE’s revitalized staff will resume posting (on or about 25 October).Posted in accidents, tagged aban pearl, accidents, Australia, Bayou St. Denis, Chile, China, Jack Ryan, macondo, Mariner fire, Montara, offshore oil, varanus, venezuela on October 14, 2010| Leave a Comment »
Posted in Uncategorized, tagged Chile, drilling, rescue on October 13, 2010| Leave a Comment »
It’s nice to have a day of uplifting news for a change, and it’s drilling related!
Posted in Uncategorized on October 13, 2010| Leave a Comment »
China is the world’s largest energy user, moving ahead of the United States, the head of the International Energy Agency said on Tuesday.
Posted in accidents, drilling, tagged Andrew Schmitt, Chile, drilling, Layne Christensen, miners, rescue on October 13, 2010| Leave a Comment »
The pressure really started to build. We’re not used to drilling for people. Andrew Schmitt, CEO, Layne Christensen Co.
Here is a little information on the rescue well:
The Layne-Geotec team worked carefully, starting with a 5-inch hole dug through 2,300 feet of the hard rock until they broke through. From there, they made another pass, this time expanding it to 12 inches. Finally, with a third pass, they increased the hole to the 26 inches needed for the rescue capsule, all the while concerned about a collapse. They finished the job in 33 days, well ahead of predictions.
Comment: In the past year, we have seen the tragic consequences of a drilling operation that went awry. We have also seen the industry’s technical precision demonstrated in drilling the Macondo relief well and have watched drillers save lives in Chile. Regardless of how you feel about drilling, the intentions are good – to find and produce commodities that are in much demand (typically oil, gas, or freshwater) , and to make a return on your investment. The challenge is to minimize the safety and environmental risks associated with these operations, and to do so consistently, effectively, and efficiently.
Posted in Offshore Wind, Wind Energy, tagged Atlantic, Google, grid, Offshore Wind, Wind Energy on October 12, 2010| Leave a Comment »
Bud's Offshore Energy (BOE) 