Eni slapped with Goliat safety orders

Norway’s offshore safety regulator has issued two orders to the Norwegian subsidiary of the Italian oil company Eni related to operations on the Goliat field in the Barents Sea, off Norway. 

Last Thursday, the Petroleum Safety Authority (PSA) issued two notifications of orders to Eni, which were not a notice of sanctions, but merely a step in the PSA’s case. The order, on the other hand, is an administrative decision made following the regulations.

The two orders issued on Thursday, January 19 are due to the agency’s concerns about “Eni’s management of operations on the Goliat field.”

The first order sent to Eni was related to the investigation of a personal injury on the Goliat field and FPSO that occurred on June 25, 2016, when a deck operator on the FPSO was seriously injured in an accident during unloading. The PSA’s investigation of the incident identified several serious breaches of the regulations.

On the basis of these findings, the PSA has now issued Eni Norge with an order to systematically identify and review all lifting equipment and winches used for material handling on board and assess measures for further use or possibly ceasing to use this equipment; present a binding and timetabled plan with a deadline for implementing measures based on findings from the review; and present a plan for permanent resolution of design deficiencies in the loading hose with regard to twisting, and describe risk-reducing measures until a permanent solution is in place.

Eni has a deadline to comply with this order until February 13, 2017.

The second order requires the company to reassess current plans, priorities, and use of resources to ensure acceptable completion and operation of Goliat, taking account of the finds from the regulator’s supervisory activities, the company’s own findings and knowledge of the technical condition of the facility, and the competence and capacity in the organisation; and provide the regulator with a date for completing the reassessment.

The offshore regulator noted that once Eni complies with orders it must notify the agency.

Eni’s Goliat field has been plagued with incidents even while in the development stage. The latest issue Eni had on the field forced the company to shut down production. This was in December and there is still no update if the field is or when it will be back online.

The Goliat field is located in PL 229 in the south-west Barents Sea, 80 km north-west of Hammerfest, Norway. Production from the field started in March 2016. Eni Norge is the operator with 65 percent interest, with Statoil as its partner with 35 percent.

Offshore Energy Today Staff