Published directions and notices
As part of its regulatory functions under the OPGGS Act and to increase transparency, NOPSEMA publishes directions, prohibition notices and improvement notices. These regulatory enforcement actions are published within 7 days and no later than 21 days of issuance and the provisions for publication do not apply to any other types of notices, letters or enforcement actions issued by NOPSEMA or NOPSEMA inspectors.
Published directions, improvement and prohibition notices will not be removed when they cease to have effect, however, in the event a direction/notice is the subject of external review it will be removed. Where a direction is revoked, the direction is cancelled from the date specified in the revocation notice. NOPSEMA will ensure that as far as is reasonably practicable all personal information as defined in the Privacy Act 1988 is redacted from these documents prior to publication. When a direction or notice is marked closed, it means that the duty holder has notified NOPSEMA that the direction or notice has been complied with.
Under Part 6.2 of the OPGGS Act, NOPSEMA and the responsible Commonwealth Minister have powers to issue directions to petroleum or greenhouse gas titleholders. NOPSEMA can issue three types of directions: general directions, significant incident directions and remedial directions. The directions powers are used by NOPSEMA for enforcing compliance with the OPGGS Act and associated regulations. Failure to comply with directions is an offence.
A prohibition notice may be issued if a NOPSEMA inspector is satisfied on reasonable grounds that there is an immediate threat to the health or safety of any person or an immediate and significant threat to the environment. A prohibition notice stops the duty holder from continuing their activity and will only cease to have effect when a NOPSEMA inspector is satisfied adequate action has been taken to remove the threat specified in the notice. Failure to comply with a prohibition notice is an offence.
An improvement notice may be issued if a NOPSEMA inspector believes the duty holder or titleholder is contravening or has contravened a provision of offshore petroleum Commonwealth OHS or environmental law and as a result there is, or could be, a risk to the health and safety of any person or a significant threat to the environment. The notice will cease to have effect when the responsible duty holder or titleholder takes the action specified in the notice. Failure to comply with an improvement notice is an offence.
Sort published directions and notices
| Type Of Notice | Date issued | Organisation | Facility / activity | Notice | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| OHS Prohibition Notice Non compliances relating to corrosion issues at the facility that could lead to a major accident event causing multiple fatalities and environmental damage. This notice was closed on 10/09/20 on the basis that Upstream Production Solutions Pty Ltd is no longer the registered operator of the Northern Endeavour, and the facility is no longer regulated under the OPGGS framework.
|
10/07/2019 | Upstream Production Solutions Pty Ltd | Northern Endeavour FPSO | A682075.pdf | Closed |
| OHS Prohibition Notice Ineffective oversight, governance and control of maintenance and inspection of third party equipment could have resulted in a loss of containment, or ignition risk, and subsequently, a major accident event involving injury or death.
|
13/06/2019 | BHP Petroleum Pty Ltd | Pyrenees FPSO facility | A677583.pdf | Complied with |
| General Direction Address inadequate arrangements for measurement, management and reporting of produced formation water discharges.
|
21/05/2019 | Esso Resources Australia Pty Ltd | Marlin, Snapper, Flounder, Tuna, West Tuna, West Kingfish, Central Fields and Bream | A673665.pdf | Complied with |
| Environmental Improvement Notice Address ongoing inadequacies with oiled wildlife response arrangements under the oil pollution emergency plan.
|
30/04/2019 | Esso Resources Australia Pty Ltd | Barracouta, Whiting, Flounder and Central Fields | A670502.pdf | Complied with |
| General Direction Demonstrate commitment to retaining the facility's current registered operator while the facility is in use, until such time as a subsequent registered operator has a safety case accepted by NOPSEMA. This direction was closed on 10/09/20 due to Timor Sea Oil & Gas Australia Pty Ltd going into liquidation, and the Northern Endeavour facility no longer being regulated under the OPGGS framework.
|
26/04/2019 | Timor Sea Oil & Gas Australia Pty Ltd (TSOGA) | Northern Endeavour FPSO | A669142.pdf | Closed |
| General Direction Take action to demonstrate oil spill response capability and financial assurance.
|
02/04/2019 | Timor Sea Oil & Gas Australia Pty Ltd (TSOGA) | Northern Endeavour FPSO | A663879.pdf | Complied with |
| Environmental Improvement Notice Systemic compliance monitoring issues lead to a number of breaches including acquisition of seismic data within the boundaries of a seasonal exclusion zone that was in place to protect internesting flatback turtles.
|
28/03/2019 | CGG Services (Australia) Pty ltd | Davros Extension Multi-client 3D Marine Seismic Survey | A665610.pdf | Complied with |
| Environmental Improvement Notice Produced water discharges contain concentrations of hydrocarbons above accepted limits.
|
27/01/2019 | Multiple titleholders | Yolla | A690637.pdf | Complied with |
| Environmental Improvement Notice In the event of oil spill, increased exposure of spilled oil to the environment due to significant delays in the implementation of oil spill response strategies and techniques. This results from TSOGA’s insufficient capacity to coordinate and manage oil spill response due to arrangements with third parties for oil spill response strategies not being accessible or maintained.
|
13/11/2018 | Timor Sea Oil and Gas Australia Pty Ltd (TSOGA) | Northern Endeavour FPSO | A642253.pdf | Complied with |
| OHS Improvement Notice Risk of injury or death to personnel at the facility during Montara surface wells gas lift activities with personnel in attendance at the Montara WHP, as a result of loss of containment of hydrocarbons and the associated risk of fire and/or explosion.
|
02/11/2018 | PTTEP AA | Montara Wellhead Platform | A640613.pdf | Complied with |