Guest Editorial: Assessing the Processes, Tools, and Value of Sharing and Learning From Offshore E&P Safety-Related Data

Abstract

Guest editorial In 2014, the US Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) approached SPE regarding a proposed collaboration opportunity to develop a voluntary industrywide near-miss data-sharing framework. The goal of this framework was envisioned as a resource to enhance the industry’s ability to capture and share key learnings from significant near-miss events with the objective of identifying and mitigating potential high-consequence risks. While the scope of this collaboration initially focused on only near misses, further discussion of the desired outcome resulted in increasing the scope to include a broader range of data that have learning value to help the industry to achieve improved safety performance. Further, in the spirit of continuous improvement, a related objective was identified to bring government and industry together to make a safe industry safer, and to enhance public confidence in the industry. SPE and BSEE agreed to cochair a summit steering committee that included representatives from SPE, BSEE, exploration and production (E&P) operators, service companies, the US Bureau of Transportation Statistics, the Center for Offshore Safety, American Bureau of Shipping, and the International Association of Oil and Gas Producers. During the planning process of the summit, it was agreed that the scope of a data collection and reporting framework would start with the US Outer Continental Shelf (OCS). Additionally, a secondary objective was to consider how existing processes might be leveraged with an overarching objective to extend influence beyond the US OCS to align with other systems and requirements globally. In considering industry alternatives for developing a safety-data management framework, caution was advised to avoid creating an additional layer of reporting expectations over and above the current requirements by regulators and industry associations. During the summit, Vice Admiral Brian Salerno, the director of BSEE, shared his perspective on the importance of industrywide safety-data collection and sharing. He also encouraged the E&P industry to demonstrate to the public how a safe industry could be made safer through more open data sharing.