Our Arctic Neighbors: Melkoya LNG plant passes safety audit

Norway’s Petroleum Safety Authority found no nonconformities with the regulatory requirements in an annual audit of StatoilHydro’s Melkoya LNG plant near Hammerfest in mid-October, the agency said in a release Nov. 11. The audit covered areas relating to startup of the facility and the initial problems encountered in that connection.

The purpose of the audit was to verify compliance with applicable regulatory requirements in areas affecting the risks of a major accident. Prioritized topics included evaluations of changes in the risk level, emergency preparedness plans, local authority relations and information to the public, and routines for notification and reporting of undesirable incidents.

The agency identified one area where there is potential for improvement, concerning the ALARP principle — which specifies that the risk must be reduced as low as reasonably practicable — and the calculation of fatal accident rate values.

—Sarah Hurst