NOPSEMA releases regulatory policy on maintenance and removal of property

In increasing its focus on decommissioning, NOPSEMA has published a regulatory policy to improve oil and gas companies’ understanding of their legislative obligations to maintain and remove offshore structures, equipment and property.

Section 572 of the Offshore Petroleum and Greenhouse Gas Storage Act 2006 (OPGGS Act) places duties on titleholders in relation to the maintenance and removal of structures, equipment and property brought onto title.

In the October 2019 Statement of Expectations from the Minister for Resources and Northern Australia, the Minister highlighted the need for heightened oversight of titleholders’ compliance with their obligations under section 572 of the OPGGS Act.

The statement of expectations requires NOPSEMA, through its regulatory processes, to ensure that titleholders maintain structures, equipment and property in the title area used in connection with the operations authorised by the title, and to remove them when neither used, nor to be used.

NOPSEMA’s statement of intent issued in November 2019 outlined that NOPSEMA will, through its compliance monitoring and enforcement activities, ensure that titleholders are appropriately planning for and executing decommissioning activities in a timely and responsible manner.

NOPSEMA also released a draft regulatory policy for consultation in April 2020 outlining the duty to maintain and remove structures, equipment and property from the title area.

After considering feedback from stakeholders, this regulatory policy has now been finalised. The regulatory policy is intended to assist in clarifying how NOPSEMA will advise and promote, monitor, and enforce compliance with section 572.

Access the Section 572 Maintenance and removal of property regulatory policy, or find out more about decommissioning.