Author: Alf Inge Molde

Text: Alf Inge Molde

“It is actually quite unique for operating companies to meet in this way and to share knowledge between each other – about what has worked well and what hasn’t. There is plenty of room for openness and honesty,” says Dag Normann Aasjord, the forum’s secretary.

Aasjord has held this position since 2012, and he is also a second line on-duty emergency response manager and head of OFFB’s competence centre. The forum’s leadership circulates among its members.

The forum’s purpose is to provide an arena for exchanging knowledge and expertise within the field of emergency preparedness and response for OFFB’s members. It is also an advisory body to the emergency response organisation’s managing director.

Topics ranging from plan development, training and exercise, courses and expertise, to the handling of actual incidents, organising emergency response tasks, and the standardisation of solutions to common problems, are being discussed within the forum.

Learning beyond and across
At the 50th meeting, Gassco, Wintershall Dea, DNO, Shell, OKEA, Sval Energi, Aker BP, Wellesley and Neptune Energy were represented, together with several members of OFFB’s staff.

In addition to an update on OFFB’s operations and work in progress, the technical forum got a review of how one of OFFB’s members handled an incident last winter which triggered mobilisation. The expectations and challenges related to a collaboration agreement within the industry on how to handle major oil spills were also presented and discussed.

The latter resulted in a separate working group now being established to ensure a common approach among OFFB's members.

“Working groups have already been established in several other areas, including human resources, communication, CIM and now also action management,” says Aasjord.

Different, but with common challenges
There is no hiding the fact that the operators constituting the emergency response collaboration are different, both in terms of size, ownership, culture, activity and organisation.

“Nevertheless, there are many common features, and everyone has something to learn from each other, whether we are big or small. There is no requirement that we should all be the same,” Aasjord clarifies.

Kåre Olav Oftedal, HSE advisor at Gassco, has been a member of the technical forum since 2016 and its leader since 2021. He believes it is important to meet the other operators on a regular basis.

“This year, it has been exciting to get Aker BP in as a new member of OFFB and in the technical forum, and there are always current issues to discuss with each other. It is useful to bring the professionals of OFFB and the members together,” says Oftedal.

Further development

Managing director of OFFB, Ole Jacob Haug, praises the effort that has been put into the technical forum since its inception in 2010.

“The advice and feedback from our members have been, and are, very useful in ensuring that the administration develops its emergency preparedness and response in a way that works well for all members, regardless of size and activity,” says Haug.

“During the fall of 2022, we started a tendering process among suppliers of emergency services to Aker BP. We were looking for a contractor which was able to offer high-quality emergency response expertise, had extensive experience, a robust organisation and a close collaborative relationship with other operators and emergency entities,” says Marit Blaasmo, senior vice president for people & safety at Aker BP.

“Aker BP places high demands on its emergency response organisation, and we expect a new partner to further strengthen and develop our emergency preparedness system. We chose the Operator’s Association for Emergency Response (OFFB), a membership-based organisation which – including Aker BP – now comprises nine operators. We are looking forward to a good and close collaboration,” Blaasmo says.

Aker BP is engaged in exploration and production of oil and gas on the NCS. Measured in terms of production, it is one of the largest independent listed oil companies in Europe. The company is the operator of six Norwegian field centres: Alvheim, Ivar Aasen, Skarv, Edvard Grieg, Ula and Valhall, and has a license share in the Johan Sverdrup field. It has extensive plans for growth.

Together with its partners, Aker BP submitted a total of ten plans for development and operation (PDO), and one plan for installation and operation (PIO) to the Ministry of Petroleum and Energy (MPE) in December 2022. These plans amount to a total investment of more than NOK 200 billion. The development projects, together with a range of initiatives to increase production and efficiency, lead Aker BP to expect its production to grow from today’s 400,000 barrels per day to around 525,000 barrels in 2028.

Aker BP’s head quarter is located at Fornebu outside Oslo. The company also has offices in Stavanger, Trondheim, Harstad and Sandnessjøen.

“We greatly appreciate having a new, big member on board the OFFB. This as a unique opportunity to further develop our emergency response collaboration, for our members, Aker BP and the NCS,” says Ole Jacob Haug.

The OFFB is a member-led emergency response organisation, run by A/S Norske Shell, DNO, Gassco, Neptune Energy Norge, OKEA, Sval Energi, Wellesley Petroleum, Wintershall Dea, and now, Aker BP.

More information: OFFB members

Since its beginning in 2009, OFFB has provided professional 2nd line emergency response services and support to our member companies’ strategic emergency response management, and forms an integral part of their emergency response systems. OFFB also acts as a resource and expertise centre to all its members.

Caption, from left: Harald Kvernstrøm (Aker BP), Marlén Jünge (OFFB), Knut Øystein Sørmo (Aker BP), Ole Jacob Haug (OFFB), Leif Gunnar Hestholm (Aker BP) and Pål Erland (OFFB).

Text: Alf Inge Molde

Jakob Inge Kristoffersen has worked as a psychologist for more than 40 years. He possesses decades of experience from major accidents and disasters, and the training and follow-up of emergency personnel, both in Norway and abroad.

On Wednesday the 30th of November, the specialist from Clinic for crisis psychology in Bergen, of which OFFB has had a collaboration agreement for a number of years, shared his expertise with the participants gathered at the Competence Centre.

Kristoffersen talked about incidents which have stuck in the collective memory of the Norwegian people over the recent decades. When asked about the emotional reactions among emergency personnel, he admitted that tears may flow, even on his cheeks, when faced with people who have been exposed to the worst horrors imaginable.

“I have never been criticised for this. So I suppose it is OK, even for less experienced personnel, to react emotionally. But if one manages to stay focused on the tasks at hand, it helps keep the impact of the tragedies at bay,” Kristoffersen says.

Further reading: Looking after people affected by crises 

Facts, not feelings
A gathering of 50 people with various emergency management tasks within OFFB and the oil and gas companies were introduced to how they should prepare for the handling of critical incidents, acute and long-lasting stress reactions, management and follow-up, principles for psychological first aid, taking care of those affected and their next of kin, psychological preparedness planning, lessons learned at the centres for evacuees and next of kin, consequences for the company and its employees, and how to be prepared – on an individual level and as a team and a company.

Many are afraid of making mistakes when interacting with those affected and their next of kin. But the worst thing one can do is to do nothing. In general, people rarely do anything that is totally wrong, Kristoffersen reassures.

During the initial stages after a critical incident, it is vital that the survivors and those affected are looked after – for instance at a reception centre or a centre for evacuees and next of kin – where they can feel safe, and are allowed to wind down and thus reduce the stress.

To reduce stress immediately after an incident is essential. The professional term for this is activation.

“Good and factual information is more important than talking about feelings. One should delay the verbal expression of thoughts and emotions. It is much better to ask about what happened, and what the person has done,” he advises.

People react very differently to crises. Most individuals stay calm. Experience also shows that the number of people affected by incidents is usually much higher than expected. Far more people than we imagine are often impacted by critical incidents.

The paradox of support
When critical incidents occur, large resources are usually mobilised in the early stages to take care of those affected and their next of kin. This is good. But as time goes by, the need for support often increases, while the availability of support and aid decreases.

“Experience from the last 20 years shows that the need for help and support stretches over a long period of time. Which means that help must continue to be available,” says Kristoffersen.

According to the psychology specialist, many companies have assigned a next of kin contact person as a liaison between the company and the affected families. This is a good thing. But these contacts need initial training, to prepare and equip them for conducting their role.

It is especially important that people within the companies – both colleagues and managers – are aware of their existence. And all parties must be aware that their tasks demand time, and will take up some of their working hours.

“For how long should they conduct this role? Three weeks? No, the time horizon should be one year,“ Kristoffersen says.

Taking their responsibility seriously
Head of the Competence Centre, Dag Normann Aasjord, is very pleased with the interest shown for attending the course. In his opinion, it demonstrates that the handling of reactions to crisis incidents is a relevant subject to OFFB’s members.

“The content of the course is of direct relevance to the safeguarding of personnel involved in incidents and crises, and our members are taking their responsibility seriously. We have a good collaborative partnership with the Clinic for crisis psychology, and Jakob Inge Kristoffersen has a long and unique experience,” says Aasjord.

Courses offered by the Competence Centre are also good arenas for exchanging experience, and the members take the opportunity to make contact with each other during the breaks.

Further reading: OFFB’s Competence Centre