Project

EU Chemical ‘Green Check’ System

Client

CESI Chemical

Scope of Work

In the US, CESI had developed the ‘Green Check’ system to outline the ‘green characteristics’ of their products.  The data sheets were used to inform the public and other organizations about the environmental friendly characteristics of the products.  It also allowed CESI to check each chemical component to see if it appeared on any of the US regulatory lists, such as the Safe Drinking Water Act, Priority Pollutant list or the Hazardous Air Pollutant list.

To complement the US system, CESI wanted to develop an EU “Green Check” system and commissioned Orbis to assist them in collecting the chemical and regulatory data necessary to produce the data sheets.

Services

Chemical Hazard Assessments

Region

EU

Project

Thames Area Decommissioning EIA and CA

Client

Perenco UK Limited / Tullow Oil Plc

Scope of Work

Orbis was contracted by Perenco UK Limited and Tullow Oil Plc to project manage and compile the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and Comparative Assessment (CA) for the Thames Area Decommissioning Project.

The Thames Area Decommissioning Project is one of the largest single decommissioning projects to be undertaken in the UKCS to date. The infrastructure to be decommissioned spans across 13 blocks (48/28-30, 49/26-30, 50/26, 52/3, 53/2-4) in the southern North Sea.  Due to the licensing area involved, the individual licensees (i.e. Perenco and Tullow) prepared six separate Decommissioning Programmes for submission to DECC, although these are all supported by a single EIA and CA.

In line with requirements of OSPAR Decision 98/3, the scope of the Thames Area Decommissioning Project involved the removal of the Thames platforms (AW, AR and AP) and the Horne & Wren NUI from the seabed and also the plugging and abandoning of 22 wells, along with the complete removal of associated wellheads, templates and wellhead protection structures from the seabed.

In accordance with the DECC Guidance Notes on Decommissioning, the potential options for decommissioning of the pipelines, MEG lines and umbilicals were assessed during a CA.  Orbis were commissioned by Perenco to manage the CA process, including:

• Development of the CA methodology
• Chairing and participating in the CA workshop
• Drafting the CA report following the workshop

Services

Decommissioning Programmes; Environmental Impact Assessment

Region

UKCS (Southern North Sea)

Project

Thames and Welland Decommissioning Permits

Client

Perenco

Scope of Work

Orbis were commissioned to draft and submit the environmental permit applications via DECC’s Portal Environmental Tracking System (PETS) for the Welland and Thames decommissioning projects.

For Thames, Orbis prepared the following permit applications:

• Chemical permit applications for the use and discharge of chemicals when plugging and abandoning the Thames Platform wells and for the discharge of any residual chemicals left in the pipeline
• OPPC permit applications for the discharge of residual hydrocarbons from the pipelines
• Consent to Locate for permitting the placement of the heavy lift vessel at the Thames Platform location
• Marine License applications to permit seabed disturbance caused by the removal of materials and to permit the potential use of explosives when removing the jacket
• Oil Pollution Emergency Plan
  
  

For Welland, Orbis prepared the following permit applications:

• Consent to Locate for permitting the placement of the heavy lift vessel at the wellhead protection structures
• Marine License application to permit seabed disturbance caused by the removal of materials
• Geological Survey application to permit a survey using a Sub-Bottom Imager system to inspect the current status of the mattresses

Services

Decommissioning Programmes; Offshore Permitting & Regulatory Support

Region

UKCS (Southern North Sea)

Project

HSE Audit of HHDL’s Onshore Drilling Operation

Client

Horse Hill Developments Ltd

Scope of Work

Orbis was commissioned to carry out a full HSE audit of the Horse Hill-1 drilling site in Southern England and audit the operations immediately after spud to assure compliance with both the Environmental Permit conditions and HSE arrangements. Actions arising from the audit were tracked to closure by Orbis to ensure full compliance.

Services

Due Diligence & HSE Auditing; Onshore Permitting & Regulatory Support

Region

Southern England

Project

Leman South West Offshore Environmental Audit

Client

Perenco UK Limited

Scope of Work

Orbis was part of the team conducting an offshore environmental audit on Perenco’s Leman 27A platform in the Southern North Sea.  The aim of the audit was to review the environmental procedures and compliance on the platform and identify any areas for improvement.  The audit also provided an opportunity for Perenco to re-emphasise the importance of environmental management within the company and ensure a shared understanding of the relative risks associated with the different environmental aspects under consideration. Following the audit Orbis produced an Audit Report for internal circulation and review within Perenco.

Services

Due Diligence & HSE Auditing

Region

UKCS (Southern North Sea)

Project

Audit of Tullow Oil’s ESIA Framework Agreement

Client

Tullow Oil plc

Scope of Work

In order to improve the quality of Environmental and Social Impact Assessments (ESIAs) from its consultants, Tullow established framework agreements for ESIA services with five international consultancies. At the same time, it introduced internal guidance on expectations for the quality of the ESIAs and a Key Performance Indicator to audit, after a year of practice, the status of its ESIA performance.

Orbis was contracted by Tullow to audit its management of work conducted by one of the consultancies on the framework agreement.  Specifically requested of the audit were to highlight good practices, areas for improvement and to provide a gap analysis against the ‘requirements’ listed in Tullow’s guideline ‘ESIA – Recommended Practice’.

Services

Due Diligence & HSE Auditing

Region

UK

Project

EIA Technical Review Support

Client

Watt Power Ltd

Scope of Work

Watt Power is an independent power generation company, established by Stag Energy to develop a portfolio of small and flexible gas-fired power stations with low emissions rates.  They currently have four 299MW projects being brought forward through development and consenting phases; Progress Power located near Eye in Suffolk, Hirwaun Power and Abergelli Power in South Wales and Millbrook Power in Bedfordshire.  The projects are classified as Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects (NSIPs) consented through the Planning Inspectorate.

Orbis has been commissioned by Watt Power to help technically review the EIA documentation for the projects, provide ad hoc environmental support to the project teams (including management of the ecological consultant) and produced the EIA Scoping Reports for the Abergelli Power and Millbrook Power projects.

Services

Environmental Impact Assessment; Onshore Permitting & Regulatory Support

Region

UK

Project

Leman Tie-back Development Environmental Statement

Client

Perenco UK Limited

Scope of Work

Orbis was commissioned by Perenco to help them gain EIA consent from to DECC to further develop the Leman South gas field, situated in Blocks 49/27 and 53/02 of the Southern North Sea. The proposed development work involved the installation of an 8 inch diameter, 9.2 km pipeline from the suspended 53/02a‐14A well to the Leman 27A Platform and the drilling of a further two production wells.

During the site survey areas of Sabellaria spinulosa reefs were identified (a potential Annex I habitat).  Orbis worked with Perenco to revise the proposed pipeline route in order to significantly reduce the potential impact to the identified reefs. A stand-alone assessment report (which included a reefiness assessment of the Sabellaria sp.) was prepared and sent to DECC/JNCC for comment prior to the formal submission of the ES.  The ES received a favourable EIA decision from DECC in September 2012.  Orbis was subsequently retained by Perenco to undertake the environmental permitting for the project, including PON15B, PON15C and OPEP.

Services

Environmental Impact Assessment; Offshore Permitting & Regulatory Support

Region

UKCS (Southern North Sea)

Project

Orlando Field Development Environmental Statement

Client

MPX North Sea Limited

Scope of Work

Orbis prepared an Environmental Statement (ES) for the Orlando oil field development located on Block 03/03b in the Northern North Sea at a water depth of 142 m. The field was to be developed via two wells (one of which was a re-entry of the Orlando appraisal well) tied- back to the existing Ninian Central platform operated by Canadian Natural Resources (CNR).  The proposed subsea tieback infrastructure comprised a 10.8 km long and 8 inch diameter production pipeline buried beneath the seabed and an umbilical for power, controls and chemical injection.  The ES received a favourable EIA decision from DECC in Q2 2012.  This asset is now owned by Iona Energy.

Services

Environmental Impact Assessment

Region

UKCS (Northern North Sea)

Project

HSE Support to Roussette Field Development Project

Client

Setanta Energy Roussette SA

Scope of Work

Setanta was proposing to develop the Roussette field offshore Gabon tied to an onshore processing facility. In order to gain funding for the project, Setanta needed to demonstrate that an HSE Management System was in place, which was compliant with the IFC/World Bank guidelines.

Orbis were commissioned to develop the HSE Management System, which comprised of a top level manual defining the HSE requirements to meet IFC standards and expectations.

Further to this Orbis was retained to provide ad hoc HSE support.  This included development of:

• ESIA scope of work for inclusion into the ITT
• Legal compliance register
• Internal Safety & Security Travel Advice document
• HSE concept evaluation study

Services

HSE Management Systems; Offshore Permitting & Regulatory Support

Region

West Africa (Gabon)

Project

HSE Management System Review and Update

Client

Providence Resources plc

Scope of Work

Providence Resources were planning to conduct a drilling campaign offshore Ireland.  As such, they wished to ensure that their existing Health, Safety, Environmental and Quality Management System (HSEQ MS), which was last updated in 2009 and primarily focussed on the company’s onshore operations, was fit for purpose and addressed the evolution of the regulatory HSE regime post Macondo.

Orbis, in partnership with Senergy, were commissioned to conduct a gap analysis of the existing HSEQ MS.  This identified the requirement for:

• Increased emphasis on process safety and environmental risk management
• Greater level of formality and documentation, required to demonstrate verification against ISO and OHSAS standards
• Increased HSE visibility at senior management level

Subsequent to the review, Orbis and Senergy were retained to updated the HSEQ MS.

Services

HSE Management Systems; Due Diligence & HSE Auditing

Region

Ireland

Project

Revision of Corporate HSSE Management System

Client

OMV Group

Scope of Work

OMV Group were in the process of re-organising and centralising many corporate functions, including HSSE.  Prior to the re-organisation, four HSSE Management System Directives were in place (Corporate, E&P, G&P and R&M).  Orbis was commissioned to consolidate these documents into a single HSSE Management System Directive and accompanying HSSE Manual.

Further to this Orbis was retained to revise and harmonise some of OMV’s existing HSSE Standards, adapting them to the new HSSE Management System structure and ensuring that they reflect current industry best practice.

Services

HSE Management Systems

Region

Global

Project

Update of Valiant Petroleum’s Business Management System

Client

Valiant Petroleum plc

Scope of Work

Orbis was commissioned by Valiant to review and update their existing Business Management System in order to ensure that it:

• Best suited their current business needs given the recent expansion of the company
• Aligned with DECC’s revised environmental submission guidelines and was ready for re-verification against OSPAR Recommendation 2003/5
• Incorporated industry best practice and any lessons learned following the Macondo incident

Services

HSE Management Systems

Region

UK

Project

Ad Hoc Environmental Permitting Support

Client

Perenco UK Limited

Scope of Work

Orbis supports Perenco in obtaining a wide range of UKCS environmental permits, including chemical permits, EIA directions, marine survey consents, OPPC permits, PWA consents and OPEPs for fields including Hoton, Leman SW, Inde, Ravenspurn North, Cleeton, Thames and Welland.

Services

Offshore Permitting & Regulatory Support; Oil Pollution Emergency Planning & Emergency Response Support; Environmental Impact Assessment; Chemical Hazard Assessments

Region

UKCS (Southern North Sea)

Project

Environmental Permitting Support to MPX’s Drilling Programmes

Client

MPX North Sea Limited

Scope of Work

Orbis has provided environmental permitting support to MPX for their Orlando, Timon and Aragon drilling campaigns in the northern North Sea.

The scope of work included:

• Production of Oil Pollution Emergency Plans (including in-house modelling using OSCAR)
• Chemical risk assessment of drilling chemicals (using CHARM) and preparation of an EIA justification document to obtain the Chemical Permit and EIA Direction
• OPPC permit applications

Of note is that the permits for Aragon were obtained via DECC’s new Portal Environmental Tracking System (PETS).

To assist MPX maintain compliance during drilling, Orbis also developed a chemical tracker for use on the rig to ensure MPX remained within their permitted chemical use and discharge quantities.

During the drilling programme for the Orlando appraisal well, Orbis was commissioned to audit the waste management contractor on behalf of MPX. This involved a desk top review (on-site) of the waste contractor’s permits, tracking systems and internal processes.

At the end of each of the drilling campaigns Orbis were retained to review and submit MPX’s EEMS data via the DECC UK Oil Portal.

On an annual basis, Orbis has assisted MPX in preparing their annual OSPAR report relating to chemical use and discharge during operations and the associated Technical Justification Report for the continued use and/or discharge of all chemicals identified as Chemicals for Priority Action or Candidates for Substitution.

Services

Offshore Permitting & Regulatory Support; Oil Pollution Emergency Planning & Emergency Response Support; Chemical Hazard Assessments

Region

UKCS (Northern North Sea)

Project

Environmental Permitting Support to the Conwy Field Development Project

Client

EOG Resources United Kingdom Limited (EOGUKL)

Scope of Work

Orbis is providing environmental permitting support to EOGUKL for the Conwy field development in the East Irish Sea.  The scope of this work has included:

• Preparation and submission of a PON15C (via the DECC UK Oil Portal)
• Completion of a ‘Blow-Out’ oil spill modelling study using OSCAR
• Review and update of EOGUKL’s existing Onshore and Offshore OPEPs to bring them in line with DECC’s revised OPEP guidance and preparation of the Conwy Platform Standalone OPEP and Conwy Production OPEP
• Preparation and submission of 5 x PON15Bs and OPPC applications for development drilling activity (via the DECC UK Oil Portal) and development of chemical trackers for use offshore
• EEMS reporting and OSPAR chemical reporting
• Submission of Addendums to the Environmental Statement to address changes to the field development concept
• Preparation of Production Operation permit application, via DECC’s new Portal Environmental Tracking System (PETS), to obtain a chemical permit and EIA Direction

Services

Offshore Permitting & Regulatory Support; Oil Pollution Emergency Planning & Emergency Response Support; Environmental Impact Assessment; Chemical Hazard Assessments

Region

UKCS (East Irish Sea)

Project

HSE Drilling Support for the E23-1G Well (Baltic Sea - Offshore Latvia)

Client

SIA Balin Energy

Scope of Work

Orbis was commissioned to provide environmental and oil spill response support to SIA Balin Energy (a Latvian operator, partnered by Orlen Upstream and Kuwait Energy) for the drilling of the E23-1G exploration well in the Baltic Sea.  As this was the first offshore well to be drilled in Latvia, the offshore regulatory regime was in its infancy and therefore the work was conducted to UK standards.

The scope of work conducted included preparation of the following documentation:

• An Environmental Summary Document (High Level Environmental Summary and Environmental Chemical Risk Assessment)
• Oil Pollution Emergency Plan (OPEP)
• Environmental Management Plan
• Environmental Awareness Rig Poster
• Waste Management Plan
• An Environmental Tracker

Members of the Orbis team also spent time in Latvia assisting Balin develop their oil spill response management and training strategy and supporting stakeholder engagement meetings with the regulator.

Services

Offshore Permitting & Regulatory Support; Oil Pollution Emergency Planning & Emergency Response Support; Environmental Impact Assessment; Chemical Hazard Assessments

Region

Offshore Latvia (Baltic Sea)

Project

Port Meridian Offshore LNG Terminal

Client

Port Meridian Energy Ltd

Scope of Work

Port Meridian Energy Limited (PMEL) is proposing to develop a floating LNG import terminal, known as Port Meridian, in the East Irish Sea.  The base case involves a FSRU moored to STL buoy system which is connected to the NTS at Barrow-in-Furness via a 50 km gas pipeline and new AGI.

Members of the Orbis team were originally involved in the EIA for the project back in 2008 and Orbis has now been commissioned to provide ongoing HSE permitting and consents support. To date this work has involved:

• Co-ordination and input into the Gas Unloading Licence and Gas Unloading Development Plan (including liaison with DECC);
• Preparation of a Marine Licence Application and Water Framework Directive Assessment for a section of the export pipeline and cable across the Walney Channel (an internationally protected area)
• Review of the Offshore Safety Case Regulations in relation to the FSRU
• Review of onshore planning and permitting requirements

Services

Offshore Permitting & Regulatory Support; Onshore Permitting & Regulatory Support

Region

UKCS (East Irish Sea) / Onshore (North West England)

Project

Revision of Perenco’s OPEPs for their Southern North Sea Assets

Client

Perenco UK Limited

Scope of Work

In late 2012 Perenco purchased the BP Southern Gas Assets (SGA).  As part of the transfer of ownership/operatorship, Perenco commissioned Orbis to modify the existing Oil Pollution Emergency Plans (OPEPs) for the SGA to reflect their takeover of operatorship, to update some of the existing information (e.g. the environmental description) and to ensure that they comply with the latest DECC OPRC OPEP Guidance, dated July 2012.

Further to this, Orbis was retained to undertake the update to the Perenco Onshore and SNS (S) Offshore OPEPs, a legal requirement every 5 years.  Additional oil spill modelling was undertaken in-house using OSCAR to address the potential release of condensate from the export pipelines to shore and the in-field and inter-field pipelines.  A Shoreline Protection Plan was also developed given that the export pipelines tie-back to onshore facilities (i.e. are within 25 miles of the coast).

Services

Oil Pollution Emergency Planning & Emergency Response Support

Region

UKCS (Southern North Sea)

Project

Tarfaya Oil Spill Contingency Plan, Offshore Morocco

Client

Galp Energia Tarfaya BV / Senergy

Scope of Work

Orbis were commissioned by Senergy (Well Management Company) to produce an Oil spill Contingency Plan (OSCP) for Galp Energia Tarfaya BV who were proposing to drill the Tarfaya exploration well offshore Morocco and close to the international boundary with the Canary Islands.

In the absence of offshore legislation in Morocco, the OSCP was written in-line with international best practice and in compliance with UK regulatory requirements.  The document included information for offshore and onshore personnel to respond to a spill incident.  As part of the OSCP a risk assessment was undertaken to identify the types and sizes of spill that the Galp oil pollution emergency response arrangements may have to cope with and assesses the potential fate and effects of spills in the marine environment.

Services

Oil Pollution Emergency Planning & Emergency Response Support

Region

North Africa (Offshore Morocco)

Project

Onshore Oil Pollution Emergency Plan (OPEP)

Client

Alpha Petroleum Resources Limited

Scope of Work

Orbis was commissioned by Alpha to compile an Onshore OPEP for their producing assets.

Alpha is the Production Licence Operator of the Kilmar, Garrow, Wenlock and Helvellyn facilities in the Southern North Sea.  Perenco act as the Installation, Pipeline and Well Operator for these assets on behalf of Alpha.

Historically oil pollution emergency response arrangements have been entirely covered by Perenco.  However, in light of the implementation of EU Directive on the Safety of Offshore Oil & Gas Operations in the UK, DECC requested that Alpha put in place an Onshore OPEP.  The Onshore OPEP was required to detail the information and procedures that Alpha’s onshore personnel would need to oversee an effective and proportionate response in the event of a release of hydrocarbons from one of their producing assets.

Services

Oil Pollution Emergency Planning & Emergency Response Support

Region

UKCS (Southern North Sea)

Project

Ad Hoc Environmental Support to Third Energy

Client

Third Energy Limited

Scope of Work

Third Energy operates a number of onshore gas fields in the Vale of Pickering in North Yorkshire. These fields are tied-back to the Knapton Generating Station where the gas is processed and used to generate electricity.

Third Energy commissioned Orbis to provide ad hoc environmental support. This work involved:

• Management of the EIA contractor and technical review of the Environmental Statements (ESs) produced for the Ebberston Moor Field Development
• Support at stakeholder meetings, including the public exhibition for the ESs
• Environmental permitting and consents support for onshore activities

Services

Onshore Permitting & Regulatory Support

Region

North East England

Project

Gateway Gas Storage Project

Client

Gateway Storage Company Ltd

Scope of Work

Gateway was proposing to build an underground natural gas storage facility in the East Irish Sea, approximately 25 km (15 miles) south west of Barrow-in-Furness.  The onshore part of the project involved the construction of a new gas compression station (GCS) and the installation of two 36 inch gas import/export gas pipelines, a 3 inch MEG pipeline and a power cable from the GCS to the storage offshore facility.

Members of the Orbis team were originally involved in the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for the project back in 2007.  Orbis was subsequently commissioned to extend the validity of the onshore planning application for the project and vary the Marine Licence.  The project is located within the Morecambe Bay European Marine Site and has required extensive consultation with stakeholders including Barrow Borough Council, Marine Management Organisation, Natural England and the Environment Agency.

Services

Onshore Permitting & Regulatory Support; Environmental Impact Assessment

Region

North West England

Project

HSE Support for HHDL’s Onshore Well Operations

Client

Horse Hill Developments Limited (HHDL)

Scope of Work

A new operator, HHDL, outsourced its HSE requirements to Orbis for the conventional Horse Hill-1 well in Southern England. Reporting to the CEO, Orbis:

• Developed an integrated HSE Management System for the new company, launched it and inducted the HHDL management team in their HSE responsibilities
• Managed a high level risk assessment to identify all regulatory, operational and HSE challenges to the project schedule and objectives and agree actions to further minimise project risk
• Identified what Environmental Permits were required and when and managed the application process with the Environment Agency (EA) to deliver them on schedule. A particular challenge of the project was the relatively short timescale allowed in the original project schedule for permitting
• The EA’s Mining Waste Permit required noise monitoring and surface water sampling programmes to be implemented. Orbis wrote project scopes for this work, procured contractors and provided overall supervision of the work
• Developed all required HSE documentation to support well operations including: HSE Plan (to satisfy the requirements of the Borehole Sites & Operations Regulations 1995 (BSOR)), Pollution Incident Plan, Bridging Document (to fully integrate the Drilling Contractor’s and HHDL’s management systems), Emergency Response Plan and Site Induction Documentation. This required developing a close working partnership with the HHDL Drilling Group and with the Drilling Contractor
• Rolled out all documentation into the organisation and trained personnel accordingly
• Developed an emergency response capability for HHDL (set up an emergency room with phones, documentation, Duty Manager system, etc. and provided emergency response training to HHDL management)
• Carried out a full HSE audit of the site and operations immediately after spud to assure compliance with permit conditions and HSE arrangements. Actions arising from the audit were tracked to closure to ensure full compliance
• Ensured ongoing monitoring of the drilling operations through regular site inspections and weekly safety meetings
• Managed and supported accident investigations

Services

Onshore Permitting & Regulatory Support; Due Diligence & HSE Auditing; Environmental Impact Assessment

Region

South East England

Project

Doyle Project: Marine vs Helicopter Transfer QRA Study

Client

Serica Energy plc

Scope of Work

Orbis was commissioned by Serica to investigate the feasibility of carrying out work-over operations for a potential sub-sea well at the Doyle location (Block 113/27 in the East Irish Sea) without helicopter access.  The proposed subsea well location for Doyle is located around 2.5 kilometres from the Walney Wind Farm Extension area.  Once the wind farm is in place, it is understood that helicopter operations to the Doyle location would not be possible.

To achieve Serica’s objective, Orbis conducted a quantitative risk assessment (QRA) study to evaluate and compare the risks associated with transporting crew to / from a rig working over the Doyle well by either marine vessels or helicopter.  The key objectives of the QRA study were to:

• Numerically evaluate the safety risks associated with marine and helicopter transportation for this specific operations (a workover of the Doyle well);
• Compare and contrast these risk values and comment on their acceptability with regard to ALARP (as low as reasonably practicable) targets.

The study was considered to be a first step in the process of deciding on the acceptability of marine transfer for workover operations at Doyle.

Services

Safety Cases

Region

UKCS (East Irish Sea)

Project

Roussette Field Development: HSE Concept Evaluation Study

Client

Setanta Energy Roussette SA

Scope of Work

Orbis was commissioned by Setanta to undertaken a high level comparison study of the HSE impacts of five development concept options under consideration for the Roussette field, offshore Gabon.  The aim of the study was to aid Setanta in the selection of an agreed development approach.

The study ranked the five concept options using industry standard safety engineering approaches.

The risk process started with the identification of major accident hazards, which were then ranked by using a 5 by 5 Likelihood x Consequence Risk Matrix.  Environmental and social impacts were also identified and ranked.

Services

Safety Cases

Region

West Africa (Gabon)