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Inadequate safety culture and investigation of accidents at Maersk Oil
16 June 2008
UK Union RMT disappointed it hasn’t been consulted over safety report at Maersk Oil
An inadequate safety culture and investigation of accidents are the two main findings of a major safety audit of Maersk Oil carried out from June 2007 to April 2008.
The report was drawn up in cooperation with ABS Consulting, headquartered in Texas. The report was commissioned by parent company Maersk Oil in Copenhagen, and covered the company’s operations in Denmark, Qatar and the UK.
Maersk Oil UK says an action plan has now been developed and discussed with the UK’s Health & Safety Executive (HSE) to address the key recommendations. In November 2007 the HSE ordered the Maersk Oil installation “Janice” to be shut down immediately due to major safety problems. The oil field is now starting up production again.
Union: Listen to the workers
Jake Molloy, head of the offshore branch of British union RMT is satisfied that Maersk puts the spotlight on safety issues. But he would have liked his union’s members to have been consulted.
“We haven’t been consulted at all and that is disappointing. Our members know the problems offshore and have raised the safety issues many times without being heard. If Maersk had listened a bit more to the workers, maybe the company could have saved the millions that the closure of Janice has cost, ” Jake Molloy said.
The oil workers’ union OILC (since joined RMT) complained last year that Maersk made a blacklist of the most critical workers on “Janice”. Maersk denied the allegation.
Head of Maersk Oil UK, Kurt Normann Nielsen, is confident that the safety audit report will help improve safety offshore: “The report’s recommendations indicate the importance Maersk Oil places on the need for safe operations and robust systems throughout the organization. It also demonstrates our corporate intention to maintain the highest industry standards at all times, and is a clear example of our desire to conform to good industry practice.”
Conclusions of the Maersk Oil safety report:
• The Business Management System is inadequate and incomplete, both in delivery and contents, especially the permit to work system and management of change.
• Accident investigation does not go far enough in establishing underlying and root causes.
• Competency issues
• Integrity management is inadequate, especially on marine systems.
• Planning is inadequate.
• Audit scope is unfocused and follow-up is not ascertained.
• Management review needs to be introduced as a systematic activity.
• Process safety culture is not adequately embedded.
Source: Maersk Oil
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