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11 September, 2007
ICEM affiliate Unite and the Offshore Industry Liaison Committee (OILC) have jointly called on the UK’s Health & Safety Executive (HSE) to investigate Royal Dutch Shell’s safety practices at five North Sea energy platforms. The installations are currently up for sale, and Unite and OILC say low morale, coupled with departures of key staff that are familiar with safety procedures, creates very risky conditions.
The five platforms include Cormorant Alpha, Dunlin Alpha (CADA), Tern, Eider, and North Cormorant (TENC). Some 400 Shell workers are affected.
In early August, Shell experienced a blackout at its Brent Bravo rig in the North Sea, stranding 61 workers for 48 hours. Shell said it did not want to risk a rescue at night, but the company faced questions on its slow response time in rescue. In 2003, a gas leak on the same rig killed two workers. Now, with key personnel leaving five other Shell rigs, safety again is a major issue.
“Many platform areas are now not covered by trained and competent people and certain HSE safety critical roles are not fully supported,” Unite said in a joint statement. “The gaps in these safety-critical positions could be so severe that, in the event of an emergency, staff may be unable to cope.”
Unite said such conditions are leading to a breakdown in communications between Shell and its workers, and it is affecting morale.
Upstream publication reported last week that claims reveal safety deficiencies in control room operations, shift supervisors, and technical capacities regarding instrumentation and electrical. “It is reported that on some platforms there is now a lack of suitable trained fire team leaders,” reported the oil and gas trade weekly.
Meanwhile, separately, the head of the HSE’s Offshore Division, Ian Whewell, delivered a stark address to industry leaders at an Offshore Europe forum in Aberdeen. He called it unfortunate that offshore companies consider it a regulatory nuisance to comply with safety standards.
He also fully endorsed worker involvement in safety, and his comment on participation counters the reality now occurring at Shell: “The commitment of many in the offshore workforce is undoubted, but HSE believes that unless the workforce is encouraged to actively participate, the industry is missing a key opportunity.”
ExxonMobil’s Esso division also announced in June 2007 that it would divest in North Sea production facilities.