Offshore Safety Directive – Licensing and Operatorship Safety and Environmental Aspects (link)
The Offshore Petroleum Licensing (Offshore Safety Directive) Regulations 2015 include provisions relating to the capability of prospective licensees and the capacity of operators who are appointed under the regulations to undertake the offshore oil and gas activities.
This newly updated guidance from the Offshore Safety Directive Regulator (OSDR) has been issued to explain the requirements of the Offshore Safety Directive Regulations as well as requirements detailed in the Hydrocarbons Licensing Directive Regulations 1995 and the Petroleum Licensing (Applications) Regulations 2015.
Prospective licensees are required to provide the Oil and Gas Authority’s Licensing Authority with a number of submissions in support of their applications, including submissions to enable the Offshore Safety Directive Competent Authority to assess their safety and environmental capability. These requirements are detailed in Section 1 of this guidance.
Section 2 details the requirements for licensees, following a successful licence application, to undertake the exploration or development activities agreed with the Oil and Gas Authority. It also explains the requirement for licensees to provide a high level OSD operatorship appointment document and to provide details of the proposed OSD operator’s safety and environmental performance record in relation to both onshore and offshore oil and gas activities.
This guidance is based on an earlier draft document which was issued for comment by the OSDR. It has been extensively updated to clarify the guidance and to reflect recent changes such as the establishment of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.
The guidance is still subject to ongoing consultation with industry, and any comments can be addressed to EMT@decc.gsi.gov.uk.
Source: OSDR/HSE/BEIS