NTSB: Shell to Blame for Kulluk’s Grounding
The grounding of the drilling rig Kulluk in Alaskan waters in 2012 was most probably caused by an inadequate towing plan by Royal Dutch Shell plc that did not address all the risks involved, a report from the US National Transportation and Safety Board (NTSB) shows.
The ice-class mobile offshore drilling unit Kulluk, owned by Shell Offshore, Inc., and operated by Noble Drilling, grounded in heavy weather near Ocean Bay on the eastern coast of Sitkalidak Island off Kodiak Island, Alaska, on December 31, 2012.
The Kulluk, under tow by the ice-class anchor-handling tow supply vessel Aiviq, departed Captains Bay near Unalaska, Alaska, 10 days earlier for the Seattle, Washington, area for maintenance and repairs.
Four crewmembers on the Aiviq sustained minor injuries as a result of the accident. The Coast Guard rescued 18 crew members from the Kulluk.
No environmental damage was found as a result of the grounding. The vessel was carrying about 143,000 gallons of low-sulfur diesel oil and 12,000 gallons of other petroleum products at the time of the accident.
“No single error or mechanical failure led to this accident. Rather, shortcomings in the design of a plan with an insufficient margin of safety allowed this accident to take place. The plan was created to move the MODU at a time of year with a known likelihood of severe weather conditions for reasons unrelated to operational safety,” NTSB said.
The report comes in the wake of growing pressure over Shell’s plans on exploration drilling in the Arctic that have been faced with fierce opposition from environmental groups.
World Maritime News Staff; Image: USCG
