Shell submits decommissioning plan for North Sea Brent oil field

Royal Dutch Shell has submitted a comprehensive decommissioning programme to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) for the Brent oil and gas field in the North Sea, kicking off a 60-day public consultation.

The field, located 115 miles north-east of the Shetland Islands, has produced around 3bn barrels of oil equivalent since production commenced in 1976, which is almost 10% of UK production.

The decommissioning programme recommends leaving in place the field's three large gravity-based structures and the lower section of a steel jacket, installed back in the 1970s.

Meanwhile, the topsides and debris on the seabed and remaining oil within the concrete storage cells on the gravity based structures would be removed, while sediment in the structures and drill cuttings would be left in place.

Following conclusion of the public consultation period, the recommendations will be considered by BEIS, alongside consultation responses.

“After an extensive and in-depth study period, the submission of Shell’s Brent decommissioning programme marks another important milestone in the history of the Brent oil and gas field,” said Duncan Manning, Brent decommissioning asset manager.

“Shell has undertaken thorough analysis, extensive scientific research and detailed consultation with over 180 stakeholder organisations over the past 10 years. Working within the tightly defined regulatory process, we believe that our recommendations are safe, technically achievable, environmentally sound and financially responsible. Shell encourages all those with an interest in the decommissioning of the Brent field to review, reflect on and respond to this consultation document.”

Deirdre Michie, Oil & Gas UK’s chief executive, said: “For more than 40 years, Brent has been a leading light in the UK’s industrial success story, contributing almost 10 per cent of the region’s oil and gas, delivering billions of pounds to the UK economy and supporting tens of thousands of highly skilled jobs. Today’s announcement opening the consultation for Shell’s Brent Decommissioning Plan is another milestone in this story, broadening the reach of public stakeholder engagement that has already taken place, as this iconic field moves into the next stage of its lifecycle.

“Ground-breaking ingenuity was required to bring the Brent field, located in the deep waters of the northern North Sea, into production and these skills will be required into the future as industry seeks to maximise economic recovery of the UK’s oil and gas alongside delivering decommissioning in a safe, environmentally responsible, and cost-efficient way.”