Oil & Gas UK Comment on HSE Offshore Safety Statistics
Commenting on the
HSE's offshore safety statistics for 2009/2010, Oil & Gas UK's health, safety and employment issues director Robert Paterson said:
"The figures show that, overall, there is a decrease in the number of dangerous occurrences being reported offshore compared to last year. However, the increase in hydrocarbon releases is a concern for the industry.
"Reducing the number of hydrocarbon releases remains a top priority and is a key focus of the industry's absolute commitment to continuously improving process safety standards.
"In 2009, Step Change in Safety, the UK's flagship offshore safety initiative, revised and updated the hydrocarbon release reduction toolkit, containing good practice techniques and guidelines to assist operators in their unremitting efforts to reduce the numbers and size of releases.
"There also exists as part of Step Change, an asset integrity workgroup to support industry-wide engagement on asset integrity.
"The
HSE figures also show an increase in the number of major injuries sustained and these are all things which we can't - and won't - be complacent about.
"The industry will now reflect on these statistics and seek a way forward, by identifying the things which we can do better.
"Step Change in Safety runs quarterly workshops where industry figures and the HSE meet face-to-face, share information openly and discuss any lessons learned.
"This learning can then be disseminated back through the participating companies to the workforce where real changes in working practice can then be made."
Oil & Gas UK is the leading representative organisation for the UK offshore oil and gas industry. Its members, which number over 100, are companies licensed by the Government to explore for and produce oil and gas in UK waters and those who form any part of the industry's supply chain.
Published 24/08/2010
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