Annual Report 2024: A time of persistent uncertainty

The safety and security of society are high on our agenda. We regularly communicate situational analyses to the industry and to other authorities. We are committed to sharing information in order to better equip all interested parties. Some things we share openly, but we also make use of other channels where appropriate.

Security is about preventing undesirable intentional incidents. Significant issues of concern include critical infrastructure, insider risk, and cybersecurity. For more than a decade, we have carried out audits of security under the Petroleum Act, which requires companies to implement security measures and have contingency plans for deliberate attacks on facilities.

Since 2023, we have also had supervisory responsibility under the Security Act. The Act is intended to help prevent, detect and counter activities which present a threat to security, i.e. intentional acts which may directly or indirectly harm national security interests.

Although new risks and new hazards have received more attention, safety has not diminished in importance – that is, preventing accidents in normal activity. In February 2024, one person died in a helicopter accident off the coast of the island of Sotra. The accident occurred during training and was outside the scope of our authority, but it affects the industry and us, and is an important reminder of what we are working to avoid.

As in previous years, there was a high level of activity in the petroleum industry in 2024. The projects adopted during the COVID pandemic are now in their final phases. At the same time, many facilities have exceeded their original operational life. Modifications and more maintenance work are therefore being undertaken. Europe depends on the safe and stable supply of gas from Norway, which makes it particularly important that all systems work properly.

We are committed to ensuring that activities directed towards the working environment, safety and security are viewed in context and managed holistically. Holistic management of activities will enable them to be undertaken safely and be continuously improved.

RNNP 2024

For a number of years, in cooperation with the social partners, we have presented the RNNP report, covering trends in risk level in the petroleum activities. These trends affect all parties involved in the industry, as well as the general public.

RNNP is an important tool for helping to establish a common picture of the trends in selected conditions that affect risk.

As the RNNP report for 2024 shows, the total indicator for major accidents offshore provides evidence of a stable level, despite an increase from 2023 to 2024. Most indicators included in RNNP offshore on the shelf, including serious personal injuries, have been at a stable level in recent years. At onshore facilities, we see a decrease in the number of incidents with major accident potential.

That apart, most of the indicators for onshore facilities also show stability in recent years.

However, one indicator with a negative trend concerns the scope of maintenance. We see an increase in total recorded corrective maintenance waiting to be performed.

This year’s in-depth study also shows a correlation between increasing corrective maintenance and the employees’ perception that lack of maintenance and safety are interrelated.

In 2024, Havtil investigated six incidents, three of which were fires on offshore facilities. We also investigated three cases of decompression sickness from diving. It is crucial to learn lessons, both from what is going well and from what is failing. It is important to have good barriers capable of preventing serious incidents – and to know that the barriers work.

The Norwegian Ocean Industry Authority – a strong and clear supervisory authority

On 1 January 2024, the Petroleum Safety Authority Norway (PSA) changed its name to the Norwegian Ocean Industry Authority (Havtil). The name reflects the scope of our responsibility, which has been expanded over time. We still have regulatory responsibility for safety and the working environment in the petroleum activities, but our jurisdiction also includes the transport and storage of CO2, renewable offshore energy production and subsea mineral extraction.

Our strategy expresses our intention to be a strong and clear safety authority for industrial activities at sea. We use a variety of measures to promote improvement in the industry, and support the government’s ambition for activities on the Norwegian Continental Shelf to be world leading in HSE.

One core task is to monitor the companies’ activities through supervision and investigations. Supervision leads to measures being taken, and not only in the company that has been audited. Audit reports are published on our website and are actively used in companies’ improvement work.

We also contribute by developing new knowledge and sharing knowledge with the industry. In 2024, we published a number of technical articles, as well as seminars, podcasts and films. Over time, our overall efforts cause attention to be focused on key areas, and lead to concrete improvements in the companies’ management of safety, security and the working environment.

Regulatory development is also an important tool. 2024 saw the conclusion of the consultation on the regulations concerning safety and the working environment in the production of offshore renewable energy. In close dialogue with the industry’s social partners, we have developed risk-based regulations that are adapted to the activities to be regulated.

In 2024, we also started new regulatory work on the safety and the working environment of mineral activities at sea. At the same time, we have gathered knowledge about risk factors associated with this type of activity.

Don’t forget the working environment!

The main theme for 2024 was “Don’t forget the working environment!”. We asked companies to pay more attention to people and the role of the working environment. A good working environment is a prerequisite for good health, for the optimal functioning of all barriers, and for the avoidance of serious mistakes.

During 2024, we organised several seminars on the theme of the working environment, and we published technical material on our website. Among other things, the working environment was on the agenda of the Safety Forum’s annual conference. Our impression is that this main theme has prompted reflection, discussion and action among the companies.

Much of the work in the industry is performed by suppliers. Stringent framework conditions in contracts can have a negative impact on the working environment. This is something of particular concern to us, and which we address with the stakeholders and with individual companies in different contexts. Our experience is that the operators are taking steps to reduce the risk that supplier employees are exposed to, but this remains a focal area for us.

Trust

Every autumn, we invite industry leaders to a special conference on safety. In 2024, the topic of the Top Executive Conference was “trust”. We are committed to maintaining a safety regime in which trust is a key factor, even while the world changes around us.

The tripartite Security Forum and Regulatory Forum are important for maintaining trust between the social partners. Trust is also crucial when administering a regulatory framework based on functional requirements, and in a regime where responsibility is clearly placed with the companies themselves. But trust cannot turn into naivety, and our monitoring and sanctioning authority must not be underestimated.

We are also dependent on the industry having trust in us as an authority. We are constantly working to improve our processes and products. The results of the user survey show that the vast majority trust the Norwegian Ocean Industry Authority. This is important to us and we will work actively to maintain that trust.

The annual report is available in Norwegian only.