Decommissioning: Status and regulations

While the low oil and gas prices have been bad news for almost everybody in the business of selling oil and oilfield services, there might be a niche sector that could benefit  –  decommissioning.

According to a recent report by Douglas-Westwood, an energy intelligence group, there is a big opportunity for the companies specializing in decommissioning to be part of removing the huge tonnage of infrastructure that exists in the North Sea.

The energy intelligence group asserts that with low oil prices, life extension work that has kept many North Sea platforms producing long past their design life no longer makes commercial sense. Douglas-Westwood highlighted the Dunlin platform which had been producing since 1978, as an early casualty, having been abandoned in 2015. Also, another UK North Sea platform, Murchison, is set to be removed. The consortium between AF Gruppen

Also, another UK North Sea platform, Murchison, which had been in production since 1980, is set to be removed. The consortium between AF Gruppen, and Heerema Marine Contractors won the contract for the for the removal and disposal of the Murchison Platform in 2014, with final completion of the work expected 2020.

Providing the UK as an example of the North Sea decom activity ahead, Douglas-Westwood earlier this year said that 146 platforms could be removed from the UK during 2019-2026.

Also, Oil and Gas UK, an industry body representing the offshore oil and gas companies in the UK, recently said that over the next decade, 79 platforms are forecast for removal across the UKCS representing around 17 percent of some 470 installations that will require decommissioning over the next 30 to 40 years.

Decommissioning session in Amsterdam

Navingo, the Dutch media company with the largest scope in the maritime and offshore energy sector, is organizing Offshore Energy Exhibition and Conference, one of the largest growing energy focused events in Europe, held annually.

This year’s edition of the Offshore Energy Exhibition and Conference will be hosting a special technical session focused on the offshore decommissioning activity – Decommissioning: Status and regulations.

At the event, scheduled for October 25 – 26, 2016, the attendees will have the opportunity to learn more about the decommissioning trends, rules and regulations in decommissioning, the latest decommissioning figures and recent experiences in oil and gas decommissioning projects. The session is organized in cooperation with Association of Dutch Suppliers in the Upstream Oil and Gas Industry (IRO) and Decom North Sea.

Learn more on the Offshore Energy Exhibition and Conference and the technical sessions by following the link https://offshore-energy.biz/conference/conference-program-2016/