Mendes, Pietro A. S., Hall, Jeremy, Matos, Stevia and Silvestre, Bruno (2014) Reforming Brazil׳s offshore oil and gas safety regulatory framework: lessons from Norway, the United Kingdom and the United States. Energy Policy, 74. pp. 443-453. ISSN 0301-4215

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Abstract

We propose reforming the Brazilian regulatory safety framework (BRSF) for offshore oil and gas production and drilling operations. Brazil has emerged as a leading offshore producer with extensive proven reserves yet to be exploited. However, the BRSF has not been updated since 2007, and there are now major concerns about the industry׳s safety, particularly after the BP Deepwater Horizon accident, along with the technical challenges due to extreme conditions under which Brazil׳s resources are located. Drawing on experiences from three leading offshore oil and gas producers (Norway, the UK, and the US), we recommend the adoption of three best practices: the UK׳s ‘safety case’ approach (where operators are expected to provide convincing and valid arguments that a system is sufficiently safe for a given application in a specific environment), Norway׳s ‘barrier management’ (evidence that there are at least two tested and independent barriers to avoid accidents) and greater investment in safety research and development, as suggested by the US׳s National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling. We discuss implications for policy reform and how best practices can be applied within the Brazilian context.

Item Type:	Article
Schools and Departments:	University of Sussex Business School > SPRU - Science Policy Research Unit
Subjects:	H Social Sciences
Depositing User:	Tahir Beydola
Date Deposited:	12 Nov 2019 10:06
Last Modified:	12 Nov 2019 10:11
URI:	http://sro.sussex.ac.uk/id/eprint/87983

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