What's happening offshore?

The Regulator 2022 - Issue 2

During Q1 2022 , there were 41 fixed facilities, five mobile offshore drilling units, three vessels, 92 pipelines, eight sets of subsea infrastructure and three seismic activities within NOPSEMA’s jurisdiction.

The number of offshore hours worked decreased compared to the same period last year and was the lowest recorded in more than a year. A significant drop in hours worked on mobile facilities due to deferred projects was a key contributor to the overall decrease.

Of the total number of facilities under NOPSEMA’s regulatory oversight, ten fixed facilities, eight sets of subsea infrastructure, and 17 pipelines have ceased operations permanently and require timely decommissioning.

During Q1 2021, NOPSEMA undertook 27 inspections and commenced 39 assessments of key permissioning documents, comprising 14 new submissions and 25 revisions.

There were 15 injuries this quarter, a significant decline from the 27 recorded in Q1 2022 and lowest number since the same time last year. None of the recorded injuries this quarter were classified as major injuries. NOPSEMA issued one enforcement action, an OHS improvement notice relating to a partially functional and maintained gas detection system on a vessel facility. The titleholder informed NOPSEMA it had carried out the required actions and the notice was closed.

One seismic survey environment plan proposed in the North West Shelf and regulatory guidance on “Human Factors: Risk Mitigation” were published on the NOPSEMA Consultation Hub for public comment, both of which have closed. Public comment also closed for the draft policy,

“Section 270 – consent to surrender title”, which aims to provide additional guidance on decommissioning. NOPSEMA is considering the comments and will present the feedback to APPEA before an expected publication date in mid-2022