The audit was conducted from 23 April to 5 May 2020.

Background

Report to the Storting (white paper) no. 12 (2017-2018) Health, safety and environment in the petroleum industry prescribes intensified supervision of shipping activity on the NCS within the parameters of the Petroleum Act.

Stimulation operations are a shipping activity identified as having the potential for major accidents. The Petroleum Safety Authority Norway (PSA) has had a study undertaken entitled “Risks associated with vessel operations in the petroleum activities on the Norwegian Continental Shelf”. This study formed part of the background to this audit.

The audit focused on activities in the planning phase, the operational phase of the intervention, and the stimulation phase. This also included pumping operations performed from vessels.

Objective

The objective of the audit was to verify robustness in technical, organisational and operational solutions.

During the audit, we wanted to look at the planning and execution of this type of operation by Aker BP and the alliance partners involved, including how operational HSE risk was identified, rectified and addressed.

This included assessing the activities in relation to the regulations and relevant standards, as well as processes for establishing and complying with their own requirements for attending to major accident risk linked to well control and for preventing hydrocarbon leaks.

We also wanted to verify how operational criteria are defined and followed up in respect of a chosen operation.

Result

The audit identified one non-conformity and two improvement points.

The non-conformity concerned

  • Deficient warning/notification of well incidents to the supervisory authority

The improvement points concerned

  • Lack of training and exercises
  • Dissemination of risk assessments

What happens now?

We have asked Aker BP to report on how the non-conformity will be addressed and for their assessment of the improvement points observed. The deadline for this is set at 14 August 2020.

Valhall

Valhall is a field in the southern part of the Norwegian sector in the North Sea. The water depth is 70 metres. Valhall was discovered in 1975, and the initial plan for development and operation (PDO) was approved in 1977. The field was originally developed with three facilities for accommodation (QP), drilling (DP) and processing (PCP). Production started in 1982. A PDO for a wellhead facility (WP) was approved in 1995 and for a water injection platform (IP) in 2000. Bridges connect the platforms. A PDO for two wellhead platforms on the northern and southern flanks was approved in 2001. A PDO for Valhall Redevelopment was approved in 2007, and included an accommodation and processing platform (PH) to replace aging facilities on the field. The PH-platform is supplied with power from shore. A PDO for Valhall Flank West was approved in 2018. It includes a normally unmanned wellhead platform. 

Source: norskpetroleum.no