The incident on the Deepsea Nordkapp semi-submersible drilling rig occurred on the night of 8 October 2025, at around 11.30 p.m., during a lifting operation. Deepsea Nordkapp is owned by Odfjell Drilling and, at the time of the incident, was engaged in drilling and completion operations on the Symra field for Aker BP.
The drilling operation involved handling a logging tool that was to be moved from the catwalk to the pipe deck using the starboard offshore knuckle boom crane.
Three people were directly involved in the incident. These were the crane operator and two deck operators, who served as the signaller and the slinger, respectively.
The logging tool, which weighed 2.67 tonnes and was 11.81 metres long, swung uncontrollably during the lifting operation and struck the deck operator acting as the slinger, in the chest area.
The deck operator was seriously injured and was flown ashore by the SAR service for medical treatment.
Actual consequences
The deck operator was struck by the logging tool and suffered a broken arm and several broken ribs. The person also sustained internal injuries.
The incident did not result in any material damage or environmental contamination.
Potential consequences
Under slightly different circumstances, the incident could have resulted in more serious injuries or death.
Direct causes
The direct cause of the incident was that, during the lifting operation, the load was not fully under control, and the deck operator who was injured was standing in the path of the load and, at times, directly beneath it. As a result, the person was struck by the load while the crane operator was trying to regain control.
Underlying causes
The investigation identified several underlying causes. These include:
- inventory and inventory overview
- deficient expertise and experience in the offshore organisation
- handover
- planning and execution of lifting operation
- work permits
- follow-up of own organisation
- safety culture
Non-conformities
Four non-conformities were identified by the investigation. These comprised:
- planning and execution of the lifting operation
- transfer of information at shift and crew changes
- handling of hazard and accident situations
- follow-up
Order
Our investigation has revealed serious regulatory breaches.
We have issued Odfjell Drilling with the following order:
Pursuant to the Framework Regulations, section 69 concerning administrative decisions, the Management Regulations, section 21 concerning follow-up, and the Activities Regulations, section 92 concerning lifting operations, we hereby order Odfjell Drilling to:
- Identify the reasons why requirements for lifting operations were not complied with, including requirements for competence and training.
- Implement measures to ensure compliance with lifting operation requirements.
- Identify the reasons why the requirements for handover meetings and the planning of lifting operations were not complied with.
- Implement measures to ensure compliance with the requirements for handover meetings and the planning of lifting operations.
- Review the process to ensure that the follow-up activities described in governing documents are planned and carried out in a risk-based and appropriate manner, and evaluate measures.
- Evaluate the impact of the measures outlined in items 2, 4 and 5.
See the report’s non-conformities 10.1.1 concerning the planning and execution of lifting operations, 10.1.2 concerning the transfer of information at shift and crew changes, 10.1.3 concerning the handling of hazard and accident situations, and 10.1.4 concerning follow-up.
The deadline for complying with items 1 to 5 is 1 June 2026 and we request that a meeting be scheduled with Havtil by 5 June 2026, to present the findings and proposed measures.
The deadline for complying with item 6 is 2 October 2026, and we request that a meeting be scheduled with Havtil by 9 October 2026, to present the results.