§ Mr. DoranTo ask the Secretary of State for Energy (1) in respect of the Argyll production platform, how many times this has been inspected by the appropriate certifying authority in the last five years; what were the dates of inspection; what are the dates of inspection by his Department's inspectors in the same period; what was the result of these inspections; what regulations and guidance notes were in force at the time of construction of the installation; whether any exemption was applied for or granted to these provisions; whether the facilities on the installation comply with all current regulations and guidance notes; what is the number of injuries, including fatalities, occurring on the installation since it was positioned; how many breaches of regulations or Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 provisions have been reported to him; how many he has passed to the appropriate prosecution authority for action; and what is his latest estimate of the life of the installation;
(2) in respect of the Forties production platform, how many times this has been inspected by the appropriate certifying authority in the last five years; what were the dates of inspection; what are the dates of inspection by his Department's inspectors in the same period; what was the result of these inspections; what regulations and guidance notes were in force at the time of construction of the installation; whether any exemption was applied for or granted to these provisions; whether the facilities on the installation comply with all current regulations and guidance notes; what is the number of injuries, including fatalities, occurring on the installation since it was positioned; how many breaches of regulations or Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 provisions have been reported to him; how many he has passed to the appropriate prosecution authority for action; and what is his latest estimate of the life of the installation;
(3) in respect of the Tartan production platform, how many times this has been inspected by the appropriate certifying authority in the last five years; what were the dates of inspection; what are the dates of inspection by his Department's inspectors in the same period; what was the result of these inspections; what regulations and guidance notes were in force at the time of construction of the 407W installation; whether any exemption was applied for or granted to these provisions; whether the facilities on the installation comply with all current regulations and guidance notes; what is the number of injuries, including fatalities, occurring on the installation since it was positioned; how many breaches of regulations or Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 provisions have been reported to him; how many he has passed to the appropriate prosecution authority for action; and what is his latest estimate of the life of the installation;
(4) in respect of the Thistle production platform, how many times this has been inspected by the appropriate certifying authority in the last five years; what were the dates of inspection; what are the dates of inspection by his Department's inspectors in the same period; what was the result of these inspections; what regulations and guidance notes were in force at the time of construction of the installation; whether any exemption was applied for or granted to these provisions; whether the facilities on the installation comply with all current regulations and guidance notes; what is the number of injuries, including fatalities, occurring on the installation since it was positioned; how many breaches of regulations or Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 provisions have been reported to him; how many he has passed to the appropriate prosecution authority for action; and what is his latest estimate of the life of the installation;
(5) in respect of the Balmoral production platform, how many times this has been inspected by the appropriate certifying authority in the last five years; what were the dates of inspection; what are the dates of inspection by his Department's inspectors in the same period; what was the result of these inspections; what regulations and guidance notes were in force at the time of construction of the installation; whether any exemption was applied for or granted to these provisions; whether the facilities on the installation comply with all current regulations and guidance notes; what is the number of injuries, including fatalities, occurring on the installation since it was positioned; how many breaches of regulations or Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 provisions have been reported to him; how many he has passed to the appropriate prosecution authority for action; and what is his latest estimate of the life of the installation;
(6) in respect of the Beatrice production platform, how many times this has been inspected by the appropriate certifying authority in the last five years; what were the dates of inspection; what are the dates of inspection by his Department's inspectors in the same period; what was the result of these inspections; what regulations and guidance notes were in force at the time of construction of the installation; whether any exemption was applied for or granted to these provisions; whether the facilities on the installation comply with all current regulations and guidance notes; what is the number of injuries, including fatalities, occurring on the installation since it was positioned; how many breaches of regulations or Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 provisions have been reported to him; how many he has passed to the appropriate prosecution authority for action; and what is his latest estimate of the life of the installation;
(7) in respect of the Brent field production platforms, how many times this has been inspected by the appropriate certifying authority in the last five years; what were the dates of inspection; what were the dates of inspection by his Department's inspectors in the same period; what was 408W the result of these inspections; what regulations and guidance notes were in force at the time of construction of the installation; whether any exemption was applied for or granted to these provisions; whether the facilities on the installation comply with all current regulations and guidance notes; what is the number of injuries, including fatalities, occurring on the installation since it was positioned; how many breaches of regulations or Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 provisions have been reported to him; how many he has passed to the appropriate prosecution authority for action; and what is his latest estimate of the life of the installation;
(8) in respect of the Claymore production platform, how many times this has been inspected by the appropriate certifying authority in the last five years; what were the dates of inspection; what were the dates of inspection by his Department's inspectors in the same period; what was the result of these inspections; what regulations and guidance notes were in force at the time of construction of the installation; whether any exemption was applied for or granted to these provisions; whether the facilities on the installation comply with all current regulations and guidance notes; what is the number of injuries, including fatalities, occurring on the installation since it was positioned; how many breaches of regulations or Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 provisions have been reported to him; how many he has passed to the appropriate prosecution authority for action; and what is his latest estimate of the life of the installation;
(9) in respect of the Beryl A production platform, how many times this has been inspected by the appropriate certifying authority in the last five years; what were the dates of inspection; what are the dates of inspection by his Department's inspectors in the same period; what was the result of these inspections; what regulations and guidance notes were in force at the time of construction of the installation; whether any exemption was applied for or granted to these provisions; whether the facilities on the installation comply with all current regulations and guidance notes; what is the number of injuries, including fatalities, occurring on the installation since it was positioned; how many breaches of regulations or Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 provisions have been reported to him; how many he has passed to the appropriate prosecution authority for action; and what is his latest estimate of the life of the installation;
(10) in respect of the Beryl B production platform, how many times this has been inspected by the appropriate certifying authority in the last five years; what were the dates of inspection; what are the dates of inspection by his Department's inspectors in the same period; what was the result of these inspections; what regulations and guidance notes were in force at the time of construction of the installation; whether any exemption was applied for or granted to these provisions; whether the facilities on the installation comply with all current regulations and guidance notes; what is the number of injuries, including fatalities, occurring on the installation since it was positioned; how many breaches of regulations or Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 provisions have been reported to him; how many he has passed to the appropriate prosecution authority for action; and what is his latest estimate of the life of the installation;
(11) in respect of the Central Brae production platform, how many times this has been inspected by the appropriate certifying authority in the last five years; what were the 409W dates of inspection; what are the dates of inspection by his Department's inspectors in the same period; what was the result of these inspections; what regulations and guidance notes were in force at the time of construction of the installation; whether any exemption was applied for or granted to these provisions; whether the facilities on the installation comply with all current regulations and guidance notes; what is the number of injuries, including fatalities, occurring on the installation since it was positioned; how many breaches of regulations or Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 provisions have been reported to him; how many he has passed to the appropriate prosecution authority for action; and what is his latest estimate of the life of the installation;
(12) in respect of the South Brae production platform, how many times this has been inspected by the appropriate certifying authority in the last five years; what were the dates of inspection; what are the dates of inspection by his Department's inspectors in the same period; what was the result of these inspections; what regulations and guidance notes were in force at the time of construction of the installation; whether any exemption was applied for or granted to these provisions; whether the facilities on the installation comply with all current regulations and guidance notes; what is the number of injuries, including fatalities, occurring on the installation since it was positioned; how many breaches of regulations or Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 provisions have been reported to him; how many he has passed to the appropriate prosecution authority for action; and what is his latest estimate of the life of the installation.
§ Mr. Peter MorrisonThe Offshore Installations (Construction and Survey) Regulations (S.I. 1974 No. 289) provide, inter alia, for the appointment by the Secretary of State of persons or bodies to certify offshore installations as fit for purpose and to carry out periodic surveys. On receipt of an application for a certificate of fitness or a renewal thereof the certifying authorities carry out, or ensure that there is carried out, an independent assessment of the design and method of construction of the installation and the provisions of its operation manual, and carry out a major survey of the installation. Thereafter there are regular annual surveys, which can be supplemented as necessary, for example where an installation has been damaged, shows signs of deterioration or its equipment has been modified.
All offshore installations are subject to this regime, and it is an offence to operate an installation without a certificate of fitness. In addition, the marine directorate of the Department of Transport conducts biennial surveys of life-saving appliances and fire-fighting equipment and plans, as provided under the Offshore Installations (Life-Saving Appliances) Regulations (S.I. 1977 No. 486) and the Offshore Installations (Fire-fighting Equipment) Regulations (S.I. 1978 No. 611).
My Department's safety directorate conducts inspections of offshore installations, during which it may look at any aspects of the installation and the working environment. The frequency with which installations are inspected varies according to the installation; an inspection rating system takes account of the nature of operations on the installation, the number of persons on board, an assessment of the effectiveness of management control, the lapse of time since the last inspection and other factors.
410WIn line with these criteria, the most recent inspection of the Deepsea Pioneer (the Argyll floating production facility) took place in October 1989, of Forties FA in June 1989, of Forties FB in October 1989, of Forties FC in February 1989, of Forties FD and South East Forties in January 1990, of Tartan in September 1989, of Thistle in October 1989, of Balmoral in January 1990, of Beatrice A, B and C in May 1989, of Claymore in February 1990, of Brent A in January 1990, of Brent B in September 1989, of Brent C in December 1989, of Brent D in April 1989, of Beryl A in October 1989, of Beryl B in August 1989, and of Brae A in December 1989. Central Brae is a subsea drilling and production template to Brae A.
In common with other regulatory agencies, it is not the Department's practice to publish inspection reports. Operators are informed of any defects discovered and remedial action required at the time, and this is subsequently confirmed in writing.
The questions of regulations, guidance notes and exemptions in force were covered in my reply to the hon. Member of 30 March.
The dates on which the platforms in question were installed are as follows:
Platform Installation date Argyll December 1984 Balmoral June 1986 Beatrice A September 1979 and June 1980 Beatrice B June 1983 Beatrice C September 1984 Beryl A July 1975 Beryl B May 1983 Brae A April 1982 Brae B June 1987 Brent A May 1976 Brent B August 1975 Brent C June 1978 Brent D July 1976 Claymore July 1976 Forties FA June 1974 Forties FB June 1975 Forties FC August 1974 Forties FD June 1975 S.E. Forties July 1986 Tartan June 1979 Thistle August 1976 Source: Development of the Oil and Gas Resources of the United Kingdom, Department of Energy 1989.
There have been four fatalities on these platforms during the last five years: on Brent C in March 1987, on Claymore A in May 1987, on Forties FB in October 1987 and on Brent D in November 1988. My Department investigates all fatal accidents.
Over the same period, there have been seven convictions for breaches of United Kingdom safety legislation on these platforms following investigations by my inspectors. The details are as follows:
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Company Installation Date of conviction Penalty £ Rigblast Offshore Ltd. Beryl B 12 February 1985 1,000 Mobil North Sea Ltd. Beryl A 17 January 1989 10,000 BP Development Ltd. Forties FD 5 February 1985 15,000 Bawden International Ltd. Forties FB 10 June 1985 1,750 Shell UK Ltd. Brent C 28 August 1985 350 Jack Tighe (Offshore) Ltd. Brent C 25 September 1985 900 Shell UK Ltd. Brent D 19 October 1989 5,000 My safety directorate does not make estimates of the life of an installation; this is a matter for the operators and the certifying authorities. However, all offshore installations have to be registered in line with the provisions of the Offshore Installations (Registration) Regulations (S.I. 1972 No. 702). This provides for registration to expire at the end of 25 years in the case of a fixed installation or 10 years in the case of a mobile installation, although applications for re-registration can be made.