Repsol UK Handed Two New Safety Notices Over North Sea Platforms
Repsol Resources UK is under renewed scrutiny after receiving two fresh safety warnings from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) tied to its North Sea operations.
The Spanish energy company’s UK division was served with improvement notices this week over equipment maintenance failures that could potentially worsen major offshore incidents.
These latest warnings bring the tally to eight HSE safety notices issued to Repsol UK in just the last two years, a troubling figure for a firm operating in such high-risk environments.
The notices, dated Wednesday, highlight specific concerns around the company’s Piper B platform. One notice flagged that emergency shutdown valves, critical in the event of an incident, had not been maintained “in an efficient state, in efficient working order and in good repair.”
A second warning pointed to a more systemic problem, citing Repsol’s failure to “implement an effective performance standard for emergency shutdown valves across a number of your offshore oil and gas installations.”
No sugar-coating. That’s serious. Emergency shutdown valves (ESDVs) play a frontline role in preventing accidents from spiralling out of control. When those fail or are improperly maintained, the risk to crew safety and the environment rises sharply.
Industry experts have raised eyebrows at the frequency of enforcement notices directed at Repsol. While some infractions in offshore operations are not uncommon, repeated issues over critical safety gear paint a concerning picture.
Neither Repsol UK nor the HSE provided further comment at the time of writing.
The North Sea is one of the most tightly regulated offshore environments in the world. Operators are held to exacting safety standards — and rightly so. These latest developments will no doubt increase pressure on Repsol to demonstrate swift corrective action, both to the HSE and the offshore workforce.
For now, the spotlight is firmly on Repsol UK. And with eight notices in just two years, it’s a spotlight unlikely to dim anytime soon.
