Court orders expert assessment of OMV Petrom offshore platform's safety standards compliance

   The Bucharest Sector 1 Court has accepted the request for an authorized technical expert to go to one of the Black Sea oil and gas platforms operated by OMV Petrom (specifically the Pescarus platform) to verify compliance with safety standards, the Greenpeace organization announced on Wednesday."The Bucharest Sector 1 Court has ordered an expert assessment of the conditions of offshore installations, with focus on their structural, mechanical and production safety. The decision is enforceable and cannot be challenged. Greenpeace Romania's turning to the court follows the discovery of serious issues at the oil and gas platforms operated by OMV Petrom. Photos and documents provided by an anonymous source in February 2024 show that at least one platform is in an advanced state of degradation, with damaged support pillars, visible cracks and extensive corroded surfaces, with the risk of immediate major hazards to the offshore activity. All these concerns have been reported to the authorities and the OMV Petrom corporation as early as the beginning of 2024, but they have refused to cooperate in resolving the reported problems. Moreover, they have tried to block the case in court by resorting to various procedural tricks," the environmental activists claim.Greenpeace said that it has also drawn the attention of the European Commission (EC) to the serious issues of the OMV Petrom Black Sea offshore platforms, with the complaint targeting both the corporation's inability to maintain the integrity of the infrastructure and prevent major accidents, as well as the lack of firm action by the Offshore Petroleum Operations Regulatory Authority - ACROPO in the supervision and inspection of the platforms.In the opinion of the environmental organization, such a neglectful attitude raises serious concerns about the correct application of offshore safety standards."The advanced state of degradation of offshore oil and gas platforms poses a major threat to the safety of employees, the environment and species in the Black Sea and the Danube Delta. OMV Petrom wants to start a new exploitation in the Neptun Deep perimeter, which is even more worrying, given the state of their current platforms. The company's problematic history raises many questions about their ability to safely carry out offshore projects. According to the law, such a past should result in the withdrawal of the operating permit. It is essential to put safety before the financial interests of large fossil fuel corporations," Greenpeace Romania campaign coordinator Alin Tanase said.