Post Deepwater, Richard Lissack QC & Fiona Horlick review the implications of the Offshore Installations (Offshore Safety Directive) (Safety Case) Regulations 2015
In April 2010, BP’s Deepwater Horizon oilrig exploded and sank in the Gulf of Mexico, killing a number of people and causing the largest marine oil spill in the history of the industry. This disaster prompted the European Commission to look at the safety of offshore oil and gas activities, initially concluding that there was inadequate assurance that the existing regulatory framework and industry safety practices minimised risk from offshore accidents.
OSD
Three years after Deepwater the EC published the Directive on Safety of Offshore Oil and Gas Operations (OSD). This aimed to reduce and limit both the occurrence and consequences of major offshore accidents. The scope of the OSD required changes to safety regimes and to other areas such as emergency response and environmental protection.
Although many of the OSD’s requirements matched the existing Offshore Installations (Safety Case) Regulations 2005 (SI 2005/3117) (the 2005 Regulations), which apply to both external and
