A summit hosted by the Australian Government in Perth this week has brought together over 400 representatives from governments, regulators and operators in the global offshore petroleum industry to strengthen international collaboration and forge new ways of improving safety and environmental management.
Under the key themes of cooperation, commitment and prevention delegates shared critical lessons learnt and applied since the 2009 Montara incident in Australia and the 2010 Macondo incident in the Gulf of Mexico.
Leading experts and key industry players from the United Kingdom, the United States, Brazil, Indonesia, the Netherlands, Singapore and Australia gave presentations comparing the responses to these incidents across various jurisdictions, advising on progress to implement reform and identifying common challenges in this process and potential solutions to overcome them.
Summit participants recognised that ongoing significant and sustained effort is required by governments, regulators and industry to ensure that the twin goals of protecting human health and safety and preserving the marine environment in global offshore waters continue to be met.
The Summit recognised that this objective will only be achieved by continuous improvement with all those connected to the global offshore petroleum industry working together to promote ongoing improvement in skills development, competence and a culture of compliance.
The Minister for Resources and Energy, Martin Ferguson AM MP, welcomed the substantial amount of work either underway or already completed since the incidents at Montara and Macondo but emphasised that more remained to be done to restore public confidence in the industry globally.
“We need leadership by governments, regulators and operators alike – all of us taking meaningful steps to put lessons we’ve learnt into practice, and inspiring others,” Minister Ferguson said.
“We must continually raise the bar, relentlessly pursuing safer and better outcomes in every aspect of our work.”
Minister Ferguson reiterated Australia's commitment to ensuring world class regulation and participating in international initiatives as part of the global offshore petroleum industry.
A new agreement signed at the Summit today between the Australian Government, the National Offshore Petroleum Safety Authority and industry is a tangible plan for action to deliver on this commitment.
It clearly sets out each party's responsibilities and the undertakings against which they will be held accountable.
Minister Ferguson also welcomed the signing of a Mutual Aid Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between members of the Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association (APPEA) to put in place a framework for deploying and sharing equipment and personnel in responding to a significant offshore petroleum incident.
Together these member companies account for the majority of offshore petroleum production and exploration in Australia.
“Industry both internationally and in Australia is absolutely committed to preventing future incidents. Recognising our collective responsibility to protect both workers and our marine environment they are also putting in place the best possible response arrangements should preventative measures fail,” Minister Ferguson said.
“I commend APPEA for its leadership in developing this new undertaking and welcome the commitment by Australian operators to work together in a spirit of cooperation and mutual support as evidenced in this agreement.”
The Summit Outcomes Statement and Australia's Action plan