Chapter 18 Decommissioning

Abstract

Publisher Summary Decommissioning refers to the process, by which the operator of an oil or natural gas installations can plan, gain approval, and implement the removal, disposal, or re-use of an installation when it is no longer needed for its current purpose. Decommissioning is necessary, where options for extending the field life are exhausted. The five key considerations of decommissioning includes: potential impact on the environment, potential impact on human health and safety, technical feasibility, costs of the plan, and public acceptability. The cost of decommissioning can be considerable and comes at a point when the project is no longer generating funds. Some source of funding is, therefore, required that can be available from the profit of other projects from a decommissioning fund set up during the field life or through tax relief rolled back over the late field production period. Decommissioning can be achieved in different ways, depending on the facilities, type, and location. This chapter focuses on decommissioning. It describes the ways, in which decommissioning can be deferred by extending the field life, and illustrates the main methods of well abandonment and facilities decommissioning.