The fire originated in an emergency switchboard room and caused heavy smoke, which also spread to nearby rooms. The fire was extinguished, and no injuries were reported. The majority of the personnel on board were evacuated, and the facility was shut down and depressurized as a result of the incident.
Havtil will:
Carefully review the sequence of events.
Consider actual and potential consequences.
Assess direct and underlying causes.
Identify deviations and areas for improvement related to regulations.
Havtil’s investigations are comprehensive and timely.
Visund is located 22 kilometres northeast of the Gullfaks field in 335m of water
West White Rose platform, a concrete tower 350 km offshore Newfoundland in 120 m of water. Production, expected to begin late this year, will be transported to the Sea Rose FPSO.
The C-NLOER does a very good job of informing the public about offshore incidents, even those that are relatively minor, in a timely manner. The information below is excerpted from their report.
On October 29, 2026 Cenovus reported a spill of approximately 1,400 litres (370 gallons, 8.8 barrels) of synthetic-based mud (SBM) from the West White Rose Platform.
The release occurred during completions operations through the cuttings discharge chute, approximately 63 metres below sea level. No indication of the release was observed at the sea surface from the platform or the standby vessel, which conducted a sweep of the area.
As a precaution, operations were suspended on the West White Rose on October 29 while Cenovus investigated the circumstances surrounding the release. Operations resumed the next day with measures in place to prevent recurrence. C-NLOER Environmental Protection and Well Operations staff were engaged by Cenovus prior to the resumption of operations and are continuing to monitor Cenovus’s investigation and response.
SBM is a dense fluid used during drilling and well operations. It is a mixture of synthetic base fluid, a food-grade oil, and various weighting agents and additives. The synthetic base fluid has very low toxicity in marine environments, with the potential to biodegrade when sufficient oxygen is present. Because of its density, SBM generally sinks and settles, with effects due to the seabed coverage near the release, limited to within tens of metres of the discharge location.
In September, Vineyard Wind and GE Vernova announced “an amicable settlement” to resolve litigation regarding the Vineyard Wind project. The terms of the agreement are confidential, so we won’t know the extent to which financial arrangements factored into the settlement.
The parties may publicly be singing “Kumbaya,” but that doesn’t dismiss the serious allegations. Unresolved data falsification charges, including the following Vineyard Wind allegation, are particularly troubling:
“This exceptional misconduct includes [GE Vernova’s] intentional scheme to falsify critical quality assurance data… and to intentionally misrepresent the quality of those blades to [Vineyard Wind] in a brazen fraudulent, and willful breach of the TSA [Turbine Supply and Service and Maintenance Agreements], ultimately resulting in the catastrophic blade failure…”
Data falsification, was also reported by Radio Gaspesie in Quebec. If the allegations are true, serious violations of Federal regulations were committed, and both GE Vernova and Vineyard Wind may be subject to civil and criminal penalties.
Civil penalties are administered by MMA, Criminal penalties, administered by the Justice Dept, could be warranted if the falsification of quality assurance data is confirmed. The relevant text from the statute is pasted below.
Finally, 28 months after the incident, BSEE/MMA has yet to issue an investigation report or share information on their findings. Are penalty issues contributing to the delay?
Any person who knowingly and willfully (1) violates any provision of this subchapter, any term of a lease, license, or permit issued pursuant to this subchapter, or any regulation or order issued under the authority of this subchapter designed to protect health, safety, or the environment or conserve natural resources, (2) makes any false statement, representation, or certification in any application, record, report, or other document filed or required to be maintained under this subchapter, (3) falsifies, tampers with, or renders inaccurate any monitoring device or method of record required to be maintained under this subchapter, or (4) reveals any data or information required to be kept confidential by this subchapter shall, upon conviction, be punished by a fine of not more than $100,000, or by imprisonment for not more than ten years, or both. Each day that a violation under clause (1) of this subsection continues, or each day that any monitoring device or data recorder remains inoperative or inaccurate because of any activity described in clause (3) of this subsection, shall constitute a separate violation
As part of the ongoing search and rescue operations, the body of a fourth individual has been located. All four located individuals have been recovered and are in the process of being transported to Port Gentil, Gabon. Search efforts continue for the remaining individual who is still unaccounted for.
The Company has engaged a globally recognized classification society with extensive experience in offshore and maritime incident investigations to conduct an independent investigation into the incident. The Company remains committed to an independent and objective process to determine the root cause. The Company will continue to cooperate fully and transparently with the relevant authorities and other parties involved.
It’s good to learn that a classification society has been hired to independently investigate the incident. We trust that their report will be made publicly available.
Of the 115 personnel on board at the time of the incident, 110 have returned ashore. Those personnel remain in Gabon and are being provided with accommodation, care and ongoing support, with their wellbeing remaining a priority for the Company.
As part of the ongoing search and rescue operations, the Company has been notified that an underwater remotely operated vehicle has located the bodies of three individuals. Recovery efforts are underway and extensive search and rescue efforts continue for the two individuals who remain unaccounted for.
At the time of the incident, there was approximately 280 cubic meters of marine diesel fuel onboard the Prospector 5. In coordination with our customer and the local authorities, resources have been mobilized and measures are being taken to mitigate and minimize any environmental impact related to this incident.
Lessons learned from this tragic incident, both in terms of root causes and potential mitigations, will be beneficial in preventing recurrences elsewhere. Borr Drilling has been forthcoming in providing updates. Hopefully, they will be similarly transparent in sharing the findings and recommendations resulting from their investigation.
Some operators, contractors, and regulators have been less proactive in sharing investigation results. Perhaps this is a good time to repeat our recommendation calling for an international standard that identifies incident information to be publicly disclosed and specifies the timeframes and methods for releasing this information. An API or ISO committee would seem to be the best means of developing such a standard.
Search and rescue operations are ongoing for the five individuals who remain unaccounted for. The Company is in contact with the families of the missing personnel.
Borr Drilling confirmed that, at 20:37 local time on October 24, 2026, the Prospector 5 jack-up drilling rig collapsed and sank while conducting jacking operations offshore Gabon. The rig wass contracted to support BW Energy’s drilling operations.
Preliminary information indicates that the rig experienced a punch-through event during preload activities, resulting in loss of stability and the subsequent sinking of the rig.
At the time of the incident, there were 115 personnel onboard the rig. Five individuals remain unaccounted for, with search and rescue operations ongoing.
Bruno Morand CEO of Borr Drilling: “We are deeply concerned for those who remain unaccounted for and everyone affected by this incident. Our immediate priority is supporting the ongoing search and rescue efforts and the welfare of all personnel involved.”
The SAS data indicate that the number of wind turbine incidents has risen sharply in recent years (see chart below). The increased number of turbines worldwide and the inclusion of SafetyOn data (from 2020 on) for UK onshore wind facilities contributed to the sharp increase. Nonetheless, the growing number of incidents is disconcerting, as is the absence of comprehensive industry and government summaries and reports.
SAS has records of 274 fatalities from 195 fatal incidents. 67 of those fatal incidents have been since 2016.
SAS acknowledges that their list, which is dependent on publicly available reports, is merely the “tip of the iceberg.” For example, their list does not include the June 2, 2025, Empire Wind project fatality.
Unsurprisingly, SAS data (table below) show that blade failure and fire are the most common incident types. We previously reported on a Windpower article suggesting an average of 3800 blade failures per year. Presumably, “routine” blade failures, are not classified as incidents.
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024
2025
2026 as of 9/30
blade failure
21
19
28
25
32
18
24
15
23
17
12
fire
28
26
27
25
25
21
19
17
23
16
15
A high priority for wind industry regulators in the US and internationally should be establishing a consistent wind energy incident reporting regime and making the data available to the public in a timely and organized manner.
Yesterday, the trial of a Ukrainian officer began in a Hamburg courtroom. See the X post and video below.
The big issue, of course, is the extent of Ukrainian govt involvement in the sabotage.
🇩🇪🇺🇦Germany puts a Ukrainian officer on trial for blowing up Nord Stream as a WAR CRIME ordered by Kyiv
Serhii K. will walk into a Hamburg courtroom today as the first person ever tried for the 2022 blasts that cut Germany off from the pipeline that once carried half its gas… pic.twitter.com/nBWPKWAPzj
My submission (one page) is attached. Main points:
Removing the same-season-relief-well (SSRW) requirements is an essential precursor to the renewal of arctic drilling activity. The SSRW provisions make Arctic operations cost prohibitive while at the same time increasing safety and environmental risks.
The potential risks and benefits of a subsea isolation device (SSID) should be assessed on a case-by-case basis considering water depth, temperature related BOP failure risks, wellhead integration, ice and vessel traffic exposure, and other factors.
As is the case for floating drilling operations anywhere, the focus in the Arctic should be on well design, integrity, and control, including carefully verifying casing and cement integrity, ensuring complete barrier redundancy, and having standby capping and containment capability.
