Interior publishes revised offshore regs

The U.S. Department of the Interior has published a final version of revised regulations for the safety of offshore oil and gas production, the agency said Aug. 26. The revisions bring the previous regulations up to date by incorporating new technologies while addressing issues such as production safety systems, subsurface safety devices, safety device testing and production processing systems. The regulations go into effect 60 days after publication in the Federal Register, although the compliance dates for some items within the regulations have been deferred.

The regulations incorporate industry standards and best practices for the use of offshore safety equipment and systems while also prescribing maintenance, testing and reporting requirements for specific production and subsurface safety devices, Interior says.

“The department has a responsibility to update its regulations to keep pace with advancing technology and ensure the safest possible offshore oil and gas operations,” said Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Interior Amanda Leiter when announcing the revised regulations. “The regulations issued today reflect the industry’s shift to deeper waters and adoption of more sophisticated technology.”

“By updating the requirements for these critical safety systems, we are meeting our commitment to promote the highest level of protection for both offshore workers and the environment,” said BSEE Director Brian Salerno. “The rulemaking process allowed us to develop the most effective and timely revisions by incorporating input from our partner federal agencies, industry and research organizations.”

- ALAN BAILEY