Production has been cranked up again on Statoil’s Statfjord A platform in the North Sea, after a fire on board forced it to be shut down last week. The incident has sparked safety concerns among Norwegian oil industry regulators and labour organizations.
Newspaper Stavanger Aftenblad reported that the platform was cleared to start up production on Friday and Statoil didn’t waste any time. “Production was gradually built up during the day and operations were stable during the weekend,” said a Statoil spokesman.
On Sunday October 16, workers on board Statfjord A were evacuated or ordered into lifeboats after the fire and smoke in an equipment shaft in the leg of the platform. It was one of three accidents on board Statoil offshore installations during the weekend, and regulators from the state Petroleumtilsynet launched an investigation into its cause and how such incidents could be prevented.
newsinenglish.no staff
