If hydrogengassen that poured out of the mining pipe had been ignited, it could have ended with deaths, says an internal Statoil investigation.
Maintenance was discouraged by cost considerations, and then an employee at the Plant attempted to close a valve after suspected leak, snapped the entire tube. It was corroded into pieces.
– This could have led to deaths, says Jens Økland, executive vice president for marketing, midtstrøm and processing in Statoil.
He acknowledges that they are at the Mongstad refinery before 2015 had a challenging year financially, and that they have had to prioritize what maintenance should be done first.
– We didn’t realize at the time how serious this was, ” he says.
READ ALSO: Six events for Statoil in two weeks
In the course of the autumn, Statoil has experienced an increase in adverse events.
Only over the course of two weeks in October, it was reported five gas leaks and a fire, both on land and on installations in the north Sea.
the petroleum safety authority norway has initiated four investigations of the company in the fall.
Right before christmas, Statoil announced its own granskningsrapporter about two of the events, and Friday came two further reports.
Three of the four could have taken lives
Friday morning was the Statoil-tops once again gathered in Stavanger to go through the internal granskningsrapporter of unwanted events both on land and offshore.
Just before christmas, it was the leak at the sture terminal, which almost took the life of a 17-year-old, and a fire on the Statfjord A platform, which stood on the agenda.
This time there was hydrogenlekkasjen at Mongstad and a brønnkontrollhendelse on the rig “Songa Endurance” on the Troll field it was about.
On both Mongstad, Sture and “Songa Endurance” concludes Statoil with the fact that human lives could have been lost.
the Danger of explosive fire
At Mongstad was the drama a fact after that, the rusty pipe broke and hydrogengassen flooded out.
In the report, it is pointed out that it could easily occurred sparks including when the six kilos rørstussen that snapped off, hit a aluminiumsstillas.
If the gas had been ignited, it would have been an explosive fire in the area, which could have fatal consequences for the person who was closest.
If the gas had flowed out over a slightly longer time and then become ignited, would a relatively powerful explosion could have occurred, with the danger of more human life, concludes the report.
Three lives in danger
Auditors writes in the report that “storulykkepotensialet be considered for this event to be that personnel in the area was very exposed with great danger of fatal consequences.”
They estimate that 1-3 people could have died, in the worst case.
executive vice President Jens Økland pointed out that they are taking the report very seriously.
He points out that the rusty pipes were wrapped in insulation, and therefore were not visible without that one took off the insulation.
Security is all over the place
– We should have prioritized differently. But we must all the time make current evaluations, but based on what we see in the day we realized how serious this was, ” says the Release.
Is this accident a consequence of budget savings?
– the Security is above everything else. But you must all the time make reviews. We are very controlled by the margins, and forward to 2015 we had been through several tough years economically at the Plant, ” he says.
He adds that in 2017 will the budgets for overflatevedlikehold more than doubled, compared with 2016.
– It is a combination of several events, who is behind, ” he says.
Also danger on the Troll
But also the incident on the rig “Songa Endurance” could have taken life, shows Statoil’s review.
It has previously not been known how serious this incident really was.
Margareth Øvrum, executive vice president for technology, projects and drilling in Statoil, admits that the event has gone into her.
– This is something that has affected me personally. One of the most serious brønnkontrollhendelsene we have had in Statoil. We take this very seriously, and I’m very glad that no one was injured, ” she says.
the Incident occurred when a well was shut off on the Troll field. Suddenly smote the sea water out of the cistern, and according to the report was the water column 30 feet above the drill floor.
Seawater was pushed up by gas, and after the seawater came gas up the well.
A minute after the blowout got the crew shut the well on the seabed, but had the gas been ignited, could the incident ended in disaster. Also it could human been lost, says the report.
the First several days after the incident, they had full control of the well.
– cost-cutting can take life
Forbundsleder Leif Sande of Industri Energi believes both events that were presented on Friday show that kostnadskuttene to the group now could have taken lives.
– This confirms what we have said a long time, namely that there is a clear connection between Statoil’s nedskjæringspolitikk and risk of fatalities in the industry. There are no mitigating circumstances, ” he says in a press release.
He adds that it is too bad that the measures being initiated in the aftermath.
– It is not enough that the measures are done after that lives could have been lost, ” he says.
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