Decommissioning Framework for Offshore and Oil and Gas Installations

Decommissioning an offshore oil and gas installation generates large volumes of waste materials, some of which can be classified as hazardous. This, coupled with the changes in operators, workforce and numerous legislations and regulations, means that decommissioning process is complex and subject to confusion. This paper outlines a decommissioning framework for offshore oil and gas installations, which aims to provide guidance throughout the decommissioning process as well as bringing clarity, consistency and sustainability to the process. The framework is informed by previous research findings, including the analytical hierarchy process findings, the Bayesian network and discussions with industry experts, which highlighted key factors in handling hazardous waste. The key factors included understanding the legislation, sharing effective knowledge, and identifying waste materials. The framework has been applied to a historical case study to demonstrate its relevance and effectiveness.

Keywords: Decommissioning, Framework, Waste.