Abstract
This paper provides a high level overview of various elements of a Mooring Risk Management Plan (MRMP). One or more elements of the MRMP may be incorporated as part of an overall Safety, Health and Environment (SHE) Risk Management Plan. The MRMP can be used for mooring integrity management to reduce operational risks. The paper covers the background, motivation, key elements, the implementation strategy and associated challenges. The paper addresses the steps an operator may take in a proactive manner to respond to a mooring failure. The issues are covered from a pragmatic operational perspective, and may improve responses to mooring related incidents by reducing overall operational risk. The inventory of very large and complex deepwater fields is rapidly growing along with development projects in remote areas of the world with challenging operating conditions. Recent industry publications have documented numerous mooring failures and pre-emptive interventions which indicate that in a significant number of cases, in-service performance does not meet design expectations. A Mooring Risk Management Plan can be developed to help improve mooring incident responses and reduce mooring failure risks. The MRMP is intended to complement an in-service inspection program of a SHE Risk Management Plan that helps understand mooring system conditions and provides a framework to implement a pre-worked plan to restore a mooring system to its original condition.
